Unknown WWII Soldier Identified, Headed Home To Wisconsin For Burial

WISCONSIN — After decades of being buried as an "unknown" in France, a Wisconsin soldier who was killed during World War II is returning home for burial in Beloit on Friday.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said they accounted for 21-year-old Army Pfc. Clinton P. Koloski, originally from City Point, in September 2022. Koloski was assigned to Company A, 36th Engineer Combat Regiment, but was killed on patrol Jan. 14 1945 when he encountered fortified German soldiers near Obermuhlthal, France, the DPAA said.

Historical records did not show where Koloski was killed, and amid the fighting, his body could not immediately be recovered, the DPAA said. His remains were eventually discovered near another soldier's remains after 1947, but he was buried as an Unknown at Rhone American Cemetary in France because of uncertainty about dental records, according to the DPAA.

It wasn't until 2006 and 2007 that Koloski's identification tags were found near where he was killed in France, and researchers found that the other unknown from 1947 may be associated with Koloski. Researchers disinterred Koloski's remains in February 2020 and DPAA said its scientists used dental and anthropological analysis, plus material and circumstantial evidence, to accurately conclude the remains are his, according to a news release from the agency.

As Koloski's remain's return home, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has ordered flags across the state to fly at half-staff Friday.