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Old 07-20-2003, 07:18 AM
thedrifter thedrifter is offline
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Air Force searching Savannah area to aid in Korean War identification

By Noelle Phillips
phillips@savannahnow.com
912-652-0366

The last time anyone heard from 1st Lt. Archie Clark Milligan was Oct. 19, 1950 when his B-26 bomber disappeared somewhere over South Pyongan Province, North Korea.

Milligan was the airplane's navigator.

The next day, Oct. 20, he and the other crew members were listed as missing in action.

In December 1953, Milligan was declared killed in action even though no one found his body.

Now, the U.S. Air Force believes it has found Milligan's body, but this time it's his family that is missing.

Specifically, the Air Force is searching for relatives on his mother's side of the family, said Therese Fisher, a researcher with American History Co., a genealogical research firm.

They need someone on the mother's side because the military uses mitochondrial DNA research, which must be traced through the maternal side, Fisher said. She believes that side hails from Savannah.

"They've moved between three states as far as we can tell, with Georgia seeming to be the center of the family," Fisher said. "They keep going back to Savannah."

The Air Force list's Milligan's first name as "Aychie" but Fisher believes that spelling is a result of a typing error.

Milligan was born April 18, 1920 in Charleston, to Lillian Clark and Edward Milligan. It's Lillian Clark's family that Fisher needs to find.

Lillian Clark was the daughter of Noble Clark of Bryan County and Alice Bashlor of Savannah. Lillian was one of eight children, but Fisher hasn't been able to identify all of them.

"We're looking for either the grandchildren or great-grandchildren of Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor," Fisher said.

Researchers know that Noble and Alice had at least three other daughters: Birdie, the oldest who was born in 1881; Fanny Belle Clark, who married Thomas Monroe; and Annie, the youngest who was born in 1899.

Fanny had two sons and both are now dead, Fisher said. However, she believes Birdie and Annie had daughters.

"They are so critical in this," she said. "We're hoping somebody had a little girl that is still alive."

The military first used mitochondrial DNA -- one of two forms of human DNA -- research in 1991. This form preserves well in bones, and its strands are short, making them slow to mutate or change form. Those qualities make them easier to trace across several generations, according to the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.

Mothers give their children mitochondrial DNA, and their daughters continue to pass it through the family lineage.

In Milligan's case, his mother and brother are dead. So is his grandmother. Researchers need to find any of his aunts, their daughters, granddaughters or great-granddaughters.

Those women's sons could be used for DNA testing, but those sons' children would not be eligible.

"It could go back 100 years, but it's still got to be a maternal relative," said Ginger Couden, a spokesman for the laboratory in Hawaii.

Besides DNA testing, the Army identification laboratory uses skeletal remains, dental records and artifacts that may be found with the body, Couden said. They do not exhume deceased relatives' bodies.

The Army has 18 teams it regularly sends to Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, South Korea, Europe and other places to recover the remains of U.S. service members lost in combat. Teams first entered North Korea in 1996, but none have visited in the past year due to the strained relationship between it and the United States, Couden said.

Couden couldn't say exactly where or when remains thought to be Milligan's were found because those details are protected through privacy rules.

On the night Milligan disappeared, he was flying in the B-26 with Staff Sgt. Chester Darwin Quider and Capt. Albert W. Patterson, Couden said. They were one of six air crews on a night mission over North Korea. The air crews were supposed to fly just north of Kimpo, South Korea, and then would be given targets in North Korea at that point, Couden said.

The last radio transmission from Milligan's flight came as it was returning over South Pyongan Province, North Korea, she said. All three men are still considered missing.

As for Fisher, the researcher, Milligan's case has become personal because Lillian Clark Milligan's two sons preceded her in death.

She's worked on hundreds of identification cases for the military. This one has been difficult because family records have been difficult to come by.

In fact, she suspects the relatives who may eventually donate DNA will never have heard of Archie Milligan.

"This family seems to be so transient that the key link that is recognizable to them are Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor," Fisher said.

She uses traditional genealogical research methods -- census records, death certificates, cemeteries. For the Milligan case, marriage certificates have been difficult to find. She found the paperwork for Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor, but not those for the more modern relatives.

Fisher has learned that Annie Clark, Milligan's aunt, was born in Florida. She later moved to Charleston but left for Savannah.

As for Milligan's other known aunt -- Birdie, Fisher believes that was a nickname. Her middle initial was "H."

The clues are random, but every bit helps piece together the puzzle of Milligan's family.

Fisher feels like she owes it to Lillian Clark to bring her son home to family members.

"I can only think 'that poor mother losing both her children before she died,' " Fisher said. "That just tears my heart. I think, 'Man, I want to bring her boy home.' "

TEXT:he last time anyone heard from 1st Lt. Archie Clark Milligan was Oct. 19, 1950 when his B-26 bomber disappeared somewhere over South Pyongan Province, North Korea.

Milligan was the airplane's navigator.

The next day, Oct. 20, he and the other crew members were listed as missing in action.

In December 1953, Milligan was declared killed in action even though no one found his body.

Now, the U.S. Air Force believes it has found Milligan's body, but this time it's his family that is missing.

Specifically, the Air Force is searching for relatives on his mother's side of the family, said Therese Fisher, a researcher with American History Co., a genealogical research firm.

They need someone on the mother's side because the military uses mitochondrial DNA research, which must be traced through the maternal side, Fisher said. She believes that side hails from Savannah.

"They've moved between three states as far as we can tell, with Georgia seeming to be the center of the family," Fisher said. "They keep going back to Savannah."

The Air Force list's Milligan's first name as "Aychie" but Fisher believes that spelling is a result of a typing error.

Milligan was born April 18, 1920 in Charleston, to Lillian Clark and Edward Milligan. It's Lillian Clark's family that Fisher needs to find.

Lillian Clark was the daughter of Noble Clark of Bryan County and Alice Bashlor of Savannah. Lillian was one of eight children, but Fisher hasn't been able to identify all of them.

"We're looking for either the grandchildren or great-grandchildren of Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor," Fisher said.

Researchers know that Noble and Alice had at least three other daughters: Birdie, the oldest who was born in 1881; Fanny Belle Clark, who married Thomas Monroe; and Annie, the youngest who was born in 1899.

Fanny had two sons and both are now dead, Fisher said. However, she believes Birdie and Annie had daughters.

"They are so critical in this," she said. "We're hoping somebody had a little girl that is still alive."

The military first used mitochondrial DNA -- one of two forms of human DNA -- research in 1991. This form preserves well in bones, and its strands are short, making them slow to mutate or change form. Those qualities make them easier to trace across several generations, according to the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.

Mothers give their children mitochondrial DNA, and their daughters continue to pass it through the family lineage.

In Milligan's case, his mother and brother are dead. So is his grandmother. Researchers need to find any of his aunts, their daughters, granddaughters or great-granddaughters.

Those women's sons could be used for DNA testing, but those sons' children would not be eligible.

"It could go back 100 years, but it's still got to be a maternal relative," said Ginger Couden, a spokesman for the laboratory in Hawaii.

Besides DNA testing, the Army identification laboratory uses skeletal remains, dental records and artifacts that may be found with the body, Couden said. They do not exhume deceased relatives' bodies.

The Army has 18 teams it regularly sends to Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, South Korea, Europe and other places to recover the remains of U.S. service members lost in combat. Teams first entered North Korea in 1996, but none have visited in the past year due to the strained relationship between it and the United States, Couden said.

Couden couldn't say exactly where or when remains thought to be Milligan's were found because those details are protected through privacy rules.

On the night Milligan disappeared, he was flying in the B-26 with Staff Sgt. Chester Darwin Quider and Capt. Albert W. Patterson, Couden said. They were one of six air crews on a night mission over North Korea. The air crews were supposed to fly just north of Kimpo, South Korea, and then would be given targets in North Korea at that point, Couden said.

The last radio transmission from Milligan's flight came as it was returning over South Pyongan Province, North Korea, she said. All three men are still considered missing.

As for Fisher, the researcher, Milligan's case has become personal because Lillian Clark Milligan's two sons preceded her in death.

She's worked on hundreds of identification cases for the military. This one has been difficult because family records have been difficult to come by.

In fact, she suspects the relatives who may eventually donate DNA will never have heard of Archie Milligan.

"This family seems to be so transient that the key link that is recognizable to them are Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor," Fisher said.

She uses traditional genealogical research methods -- census records, death certificates, cemeteries. For the Milligan case, marriage certificates have been difficult to find. She found the paperwork for Noble Clark and Alice Bashlor, but not those for the more modern relatives.

Fisher has learned that Annie Clark, Milligan's aunt, was born in Florida. She later moved to Charleston but left for Savannah.

As for Milligan's other known aunt -- Birdie, Fisher believes that was a nickname. Her middle initial was "H."

The clues are random, but every bit helps piece together the puzzle of Milligan's family.

Fisher feels like she owes it to Lillian Clark to bring her son home to family members.

"I can only think 'that poor mother losing both her children before she died,' " Fisher said. "That just tears my heart. I think, 'Man, I want to bring her boy home.' "

Copyright 2002/2003 Savannah Morning News. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.

http://www.savannahnow.com/stories/0...koreamia.shtml


Sempers,

Roger
__________________
IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY HUSBAND
SSgt. Roger A.
One Proud Marine
1961-1977
68/69
Once A Marine............Always A Marine.............

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