WWII Soldier’s Remains Returned to Pennsylvania Hometown 74 Years Later After DNA Testing

SCRANTON, Pa. — The remains of a U.S. Army paratrooper killed in World War II have been returned to his Pennsylvania hometown, 74 years after he died in the battle chronicled in the 1977 film "A Bridge Too Far."

On Sept. 20, 1944, Army Pfc. Willard "Bud" Jenkins was hit twice by enemy fire as he crossed the Waal River in the Dutch city of Nijmegen during the unsuccessful Allied effort called Operation Market Garden.

Jenkins, 27, fell from his canvas boat into the water.