Matt Carlson came upon the medal at a Glendale, Arizona flea market

Nov 11, 2013 15:59 GMT  ·  By

It has taken nine months, but a Purple Heart given out in the second World War has found its way to the family of the soldier earning it.

Matt Carlson found it in a Glendale, Arizona flea market and first thought it was a trinket. However, he soon realized that it was the real deal. Letters from a soldier to his family came attached to the medal.

“Truly – hope you all are well! For myself I am just fine. I sure hope I get some mail tonight, as I haven’t got any from you in two days.

“I am getting caught up with my writing but still have 8 more letters to write,” the letter reads, as relayed by the Arizona Republic.

The name of soldier, Clarence M. Merriott, was engraved on the back of the medal. After months of research, he traced it back to a man fighting in World War II battalion, the Army’s 300th Combat Engineers.

He died in June 1944 as his unit, made up of soldiers from Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma, was making its way to Normandy.

One of the veterans in the unit, Kenneth “Cowboy” Morris, had a grandson who is now a member of Congress from Oklahoma. Both helped in tracing Merriott’s roots.

Wanda Elliott, of the Adair County Historical and Genealogical Association, went through census records, newspapers from the time and finally recovered a photo of Merriott.

They found distant relatives of the soldier, who explained that the letter must have been lost while moving. He lived in Stilwell and a ceremony was held at the local high school to honor him and other eleven living Purple Heart recipients.

The medal will be held at the local museum from now on.

“It shines a light back on this generation that we’re losing. [...] You understand the heritage ... and the sacrifice for (us) to be here today. […] This has become a big event that everyone is participating in,” U.S. Rep. Markwayne Mullin expresses in a statement.