Family members often clench them as if they were still clasping their fallen loved one’s hands. Companions-in-arms have broken down reading them.

More than a century after a U.S. Army chaplain pushed for “dog tags” to become standard issue for troops, they remain one of the most powerful links for grieving military families to their lost loved ones.

“What they’re searching for is connection,” said Air Force Chaplain and Maj, Benjamin Quintanilla Jr. at Dover Air Force Base, where U.S. casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and now Iran have been repatriated.…