After 170 years, remains of U.S. troops return from Mexico

Remains of U.S. troops who died in the Mexican-American War are being returned from Mexico for forensic study that might determine where they were from and how they died.

Several sets of remains were expected Wednesday at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, home to a military mortuary.

Mortuary affairs spokesman Maj. Tim Wade says the remains from Monterrey, Mexico, will be welcomed with a solemn ceremony. Flag-draped cases holding the remains will be moved from and airplane and transferred to vehicles to be driven to the mortuary.

The Army says troops from several states, including Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee and Texas, fought in the Battle of Monterrey in 1846.

Archaeologists reported discovering 10 sets of skeletal remains in 2011, with bone measurements that indicated they were Americans.