CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – A World War II Navy sailor is finally being laid to rest after being listed as missing in action for more than 80 years. Modern technology — including DNA testing — made it possible. His only known family members are right here in the Jacksonville area.
Edward Campbell, who lives in Clay County with his daughter, Tina Carmona, received an unexpected call from the Navy a few months ago.
“They got in contact with me,” Edward said. “They said, ‘We’re going to send you a DNA test. If you’ll take that and get it back to us, we want to verify who you are.’”
It was a match. Edward is the nephew of Navy Sailor John Campbell, who was held as a prisoner of war during World War II. According to the Navy, his remains were found at Camp Cabanatuan in the Philippines.
“It was kind of unbelievable,” Edward said. “I didn’t realize that I had a relative like that, and I didn’t know he died in a POW camp.”
A sailor’s story
John Campbell served aboard the USS Canopus, a submarine tender operating in the Philippines during World War II. He was captured by the Japanese in the early 1940s after the ship was scuttled and sailors were moved ashore.
Family members and the Navy believe he likely took part in the Bataan Death March — a forced march of more than 75,000 prisoners over roughly 65 miles to prison camps in the Philippines.
In an unexpected twist, Edward served in the Navy for 23 years — including significant time in the Philippines — without knowing his family’s connection to the region.
A mother’s final wish
John Campbell’s mother, Margaret Campbell, never stopped searching for her son. Several letters were sent by the American Legion on her behalf to the Department of War, requesting information and the return of his remains.
Margaret died in 1951 with one final wish: that her son be buried beside her when he was found.
Even with the closure his remains bring, much about John Campbell’s life is still a mystery to his family.
“We don’t know anything about him — like why he joined,” said Tina Carmona, Edward’s daughter. Asked about other surviving relatives, she added, “There’s one cousin, but I don’t know who he is.”
Coming home
John Campbell will be buried in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, on Monday, March 30 — next to his mother, fulfilling her decades-long wish.
“I’m glad they recovered his remains,” Edward said, “and I’m glad he’s going to be buried with his mother.”
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