Long lost Purple Heart returned to Canton family
Harold P. Rolfe died during WWII.
A long lost WWII Purple Heart will be returned to the family of WWII hero Harold P. Rolfe on Monday.
Rolfe was drafted in 1942 and sent to Ireland in 1944. It is believed that Rolfe, 26, was killed during a “friendly fire” incident that killed 125 American soldiers, according to Purple Hearts Reunited, a nonprofit foundation that returns medals of valor to veterans and their families. Rolfe’s body was returned to Canton in 1948.
Rolfe moved to Canton in the 1930s, where he lived with his three younger brothers. He worked at Readville car shops of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, just as his father did. He was married when he was drafted.
The Purple Heart was discovered in a shed in Bradenton, Florida. According to Purple Hearts Reunited, medals are lost during moves, estate sales, and are sometimes even stolen. Medals have been found in retirement homes, storage lockers, abandoned houses, inside old furniture and cars, and buried in the ground. The organization has returned medals and artifacts to more than 200 families and museums.
The 3 p.m. ceremony will take place at Rolfe’s grave in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Canton. It is open to the public.
Those who have lost a Purple Heart or other medal can report it to Purple Hearts Reunited.
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