Ceremony for Monitor sailors stirs familial ties

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The interment of two USS Monitor sailors at Arlington National Cemetery will bring together people from across the country with distant but powerful ties to those who died aboard the Union ironclad.

The remains of the two sailors were found in the Monitor's turret off North Carolina in 2002.

Friday's ceremony will include Monitor kin who believe the sailors are their ancestors, despite DNA testing that hasn't made a conclusive link.

The interment pays homage to all 16 Union sailors who died when the ship went down. From Maine to California, nearly 100 people with ties to the crew are expected to travel to Washington for the interment.

The restored turret is on display at the USS Monitor Center of The Mariners' Museum in Newport News.