Experts finally solve mystery of teenage Revolutionary War soldier 246 years after his death

The remains of a teenage Revolutionary War soldier have finally been identified — over 246 years after he was buried in an unmarked grave.

The discovery, which researchers believe is the first identification of a Revolutionary War soldier using DNA and forensic genetic genealogy, was announced in June.

Researchers at FHD Forensics used advanced DNA analysis and forensic genetic genealogy to identify the remains as Private John Pumphrey, a teenager who died at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina.

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The Battle of Camden was one of the Continental Army’s worst defeats during the Revolutionary War, and hundreds of American soldiers died during the engagement.

Officials believe Pumphrey enlisted in 1777, when he was between 13 and 15 years old — meaning he was between 16 and 18 years of age when he died on Aug. 16, 1780.

Pumphrey’s remains were uncovered at the battlefield site in 2022 during a University of South Carolina excavation.

In a June news release from FHD Forensics, officials said a tiny piece of the soldier’s skull was used to extract DNA, allowing researchers to uncover his identity before he was reburied with military honors in 2024.

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“He would have been one of the youngest members of George Washington’s revered ‘Old Line,'” the release said.

It was not “highly unusual” for young boys to enlist in the Continental Army, though it was rare, said Allison Peacock, president of FHD Forensics.

Peacock told Fox News Digital that it was a “pretty regular occurrence for young boys to volunteer.”

She added, “They were supposed to be at a certain age, but that rule was [broken] all the time, from what we understand.”

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Researchers were initially surprised, she said, because they knew from anthropological analysis that the soldier was very young — but they struggled to understand why someone like him had enlisted.

“We’re already rewriting the story of the battle.”

“When we started seeing the families he was related to, they were all prominent Anne Arundel County, Maryland, founding families — the gentry class,” she said.

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“The Pumphreys were very prominent in lumber, building and land ownership, so none of our historians or the people we were working with thought it made sense for a boy that young to come from one of those families.”

After uncovering details about the turmoil surrounding his father’s estate following his parents’ deaths and learning that his family lived much closer to Baltimore than they had realized, they said his decision to enlist in Baltimore made much more sense.

“Knowing those little details to put the story together changed everything,” Peacock said. 

“When you see the proximity to Baltimore and you see what was going on in his family and his military record, you get a picture of what led this boy to go enlist in Baltimore.”

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Peacock said she is confident the remaining unidentified Camden soldiers can also be identified using the same techniques, provided the team can secure funding.

“It is our understanding that it is the first time it’s ever happened,” she said.

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“We’re already rewriting the story of the battle,” added Peacock. “We’re learning things that historians had no way of knowing until we got into the DNA.”