Edgar David Gross

October 25, 1901- December 7, 2019 Edgar David Gross, who died in 1941 during the World War II attack on Pearl Harbor, is finally being laid to rest by his family in a military funeral on Memorial Day 2019. A Purple Heart recipient, Mr. Gross was born Oct. 25, 1901, in Athens, Alabama, and was killed in action at age 40 on Dec. 7, 1941, when the USS Oklahoma was torpedoed and capsized in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. His remains were not identified until 2018. Mr. Gross was born and raised in Athens, Alabama, the youngest of 10 children born to George and Susan Gross of Athens. He married Anne Pearl Marbut, and they resided in the Elkmont community in Athens before moving to California for most of their married life. A Navy veteran of 16 years, Mr. Gross was living there with his wife when he was recalled into service from retirement. Mr. Gross was a Water Tender 2nd Class in the U.S. Naval Reserve serving aboard the USS Oklahoma, which was moored in Pearl Harbor when it was attacked by Japanese forces. The battleship suffered multiple torpedo hits, causing it to capsize and killing 429 men, including Mr. Gross. Two weeks after the attack, Mrs. Gross, received a telegram in California: "The Navy Department regrets to inform you that your husband, Edgar David Gross, is missing." Over time, Navy personnel recovered remains of the deceased crewmen, and they were interred in two cemeteries in Hawaii, listed as unknowns. After earlier attempts at identification, in the 2000s the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency disinterred caskets of unknowns for identification, and Mr. Gross’ family members in Alabama and Illinois submitted DNA samples in the hopes of bringing him home. On September 7, 2018, one of those family members, Stephen Gross, of Anniston, Alabama, who led the effort to find his great-uncle, was notified that as a result of forensic and scientific analytical advances, the POW/MIA Accounting Command had been able to identify Mr. Gross’ remains. They were officially recorded as identified in November 2018. Mr. Gross was preceded in death by his mother Susan, and was survived by his wife Anne Pearl, who died in January 1997 in Athens, and his father George, who died in 1945 in Athens. Mr. Gross’ life and service to his country will be honored this Memorial Day weekend in Athens. Visitation is planned for 1-5 p.m., Sunday, May 26, at Limestone Chapel Funeral Home, 322 US Highway 31 N, Athens. Mr. Gross’ funeral will take place at 2 p.m., Monday, May 27, at Cherry Grove Baptist, 6530 Cherry Grove Road, Athens, and the burial will follow in his family plot at nearby Evans Cemetery.

Edgar David Gross

October 25, 1901 - May 20, 2019