Remains of Stillwater man killed on USS Oklahoma during Pearl Harbor attack returning home

The remains of a Stillwater veteran who died more than 80 years ago during Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor will return home in the coming weeks.

Members of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) say they have identified remains taken from the USS Oklahoma as those belonging to 19-year-old William F. Gusie.

Gusie served on the ship as a Navy Fire Controlman, 3rd Class.

According to the DPAA, Gusie’s remains were accounted for on Sept. 23, 2021, after DNA was used to identify him.

Gusie was one of the 429 crewmen killed on the ship, which was hit by multiple torpedoes during the early morning hours of Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941.

During World War II, the U.S. Navy worked to recover the remains of the crewmembers who died, and they were interred in cemeteries located on Oahu.

However, in the years that followed, identification began on the fallen service members, and their remains were taken to Schofield Barracks.

The names of nearly three dozen men were confirmed during the transfer, and the unidentified remains were buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl, where the names of missing World War II service members are listed.

During the summer of 2015, the remains were exhumed to be analyzed, and scientists began using dental and anthropological records to continue identifying soldiers who were still missing, including Gusie. A rosette will now be placed next to his name on the Walls of the Missing at the Punchbowl to indicate he has been accounted for.

Gusie’s burial is scheduled for June 12, 2024, in Minneapolis.