Canadian soldier's remains ID'd over a century after he died in WW I

As It Happens6:33Canadian WW I soldier's remains ID'd over a century after he died

A fallen Canadian soldier has finally been identified a decade after his remains were discovered in France, and more than a century after he died in the First World War.

Cpl. Percy Howarth of Vancouver had long been presumed to have died during the war, though his body remained missing until 2011.

Now, 106 years after his death, the federal government has publicly revealed the young soldier's identity. He will be laid rest at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Loos British Cemetery in Loos-en-Gohelle, France.

"This individual ultimately gave their life for Canada," Sarah Lockyer, the casualty identification co-ordinator for the Department of National Defence, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.

"I think it's the least we can do, when those remains are discovered, to do everything that we possibly can to return their identity to them. That, for me, is the ultimate purpose of this — is to make sure that he has his name back."

A whistle and a pocket watch

Howarth's remains were discovered during a munitions clearing process in Vendin-le-Vieil, France, in 2011.

Identifying lost soldiers' remains is always a complicated process involving DNA extraction, sorting through old documentation and searching for living relatives, says Lockyer.

But for Howarth, the process was even harder than usual. 

"Percy's case is definitely the longest that the casualty identification program has taken to identify one specific set of remains," Lockyer said.

According to the Department of National Defence, Howarth was born Aug. 16, 1894, in Darwen, England. One of eight children of Richard and Margaret Howarth, he came to Canada in 1912 and worked as a sailor in Vancouver before enlisting at the the age of 21. 

He was 23 years old when he fought with the 7th Canadian Infantry Battalion in the Battle of Hill 70 near Lens, France, in August 1917. On Aug. 15, the first day of the fighting, he was reported missing and presumed dead — one day shy of his 24th birthday.

About 10,000 Canadians died, were wounded or went missing during the bloody, 10-day battle, National Defence said, including 1,300 with no known grave.

So the researchers had the monumental task of whittling down Howarth's identity from a massive list of lost soldiers.

First they analyzed the remains and narrowed down the candidates based on approximate age and height. Even that isn't as straightforward as it sounds, Lockyer said.

"It is vital to remember that many lied about their age. So that date of birth on [their] attestation papers quite often is incorrect," she said. 

That means the researchers have to track down additional documenting, such as birth records, to confirm the information is correct. 

The team had two additional, key pieces of information to go by. Howarth's body was found with a pocket watch and a whistle. His possession of the latter suggested he ranked higher than a private, Lockyer said. 

After many years of painstakingly double-checking and cross referencing, the team was finally able to move closer to identifying the remains as Howarth's.

'Complicated' family history

But in order to confirm the remains with certainty, they needed a DNA sample from a living relative to compare to the sample they extracted from the remains.

"With Percy's case in particular, it just so happened that his family history … was a little complicated," Lockyer said.

The only DNA they could get from Howarth's bones was a specific type that is passed from mother to child, Lockyer said. Therefore, in order to confirm or rule out Howarth, experts had to find someone living from his maternal line.

Howarth, it turned out, had four sisters — all of whom died childless. His mother was an only child.

"That means we have to go up to his grandmother and see if his grandmother had any sisters. And we're now in the early 1800s and trying to find records from that time," Lockyer said.

"Then, based on finding out if the grandmother had any sisters ... see if we can trace down through the maternal line to somebody who was living today, who's willing to give a DNA sample."

It took time, but they finally found a donor — Howarth's cousin, four times removed.

"They admittedly had no idea who Percy was," Lockyer said. 

They finally identified the remains in October 2021. Since then, National Defence has tracked down and informed Howarth's next of kin — who is different from the DNA donor. They are now working with the family on an inscription for the young soldier's final resting place.

"Time and distance do not diminish the courage Cpl. Howarth brought to the battlefield in service to Canada," National Defence Minister Anita Anand said in a press release. "His family should trust that I and all Canadians will remember the ultimate sacrifice he made. Lest we forget."

Lockyer, meanwhile, says she's honoured to have played a role in solving this mystery.

"Ultimately, that is the goal ... to return the identity to this person who has been missing for more than 100 years," she said.

"To know that we were able to make it for this particular individual, it's quite special to be a part of that."