Lewis J. Cope was born March 10, 1924 in Laurens, NY to Clarence H. Cope (1901-1959) and Elizabeth M Jester (1904-1969). His parents were married on March 27, 1923 in Otsego County, NY. By the time Lewis was six, the family had moved to nearby Oneonta, NY. His father was a salesman for a local bakery and later a laborer for a construction company. He was the second of 10 children which included Harry, Beatrice, Glenn, Joyce, Doris, Clarence, Edwin, Janet and Marie. Harry and Glenn were also in the service. The entire family was living at 24 Gilbert St. Oneonta, NY by 1940. 

He attended Oneonta High School, and was listed as a junior in their 1942 Yearbook. He enlisted in the NY National Guard on May 19, 1942 and was assigned to Company I. 1st Regiment. He was honorable discharged from the Guard on November 8, 1942. Before completing his senior year of high school, he enlisted in the United States Army on November 23, 1942 in Albany, NY. After receiving training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, instead of getting ready to graduate, he was sent to North Africa with the Armored forces in April 1943.

According to a newspaper article in the Evening Sun and Press from November 1944, he was in the third tank to land a Salerno in September 1943 and later that day was wounded in action. Two tanks, to which he was previously attached, were blown up in battle. He received the Purple Heart and the Sliver and Bronze Star medals for his gallantry that day. The fighting in the invasion of southern France was unique, he wrote, as the Infantry rides on tanks and trucks until resistance is met. “We had to keep the enemy on the run”, he said.

Cope was a gunner on his tank and was assigned to Company B of the 191st Tank Battalion, Armor Service: Armored Infantry on October 15, 1944; the day the American assault on Bruyeres, held by German forces, began and Lewis' life ended. American forces encountered brutal opposition...minefields, machine-gun fire, heavy mortar and artillery shells rained steel from the trees overhead. Cpl. Cope’s Find A Grave site has a testimonial from his nephew, Thomas Cope, "Lewis' tank took a hit and was disabled. He was machine gunned as he attempted to escape." His hometown high school newspaper, The Echo, reported that he was “missing in action” for a time. This supports his official listing of death which was “FOD under Public Law 490” which means in the absence of a recovered body, soldiers that were determined to be dead under Public Law 490.

After-Action Reports of the 191st Tank Battalion for early October paint a picture of the fierceness of the fighting, the stubbornness of the German defenses and the heroism of so many. (Special thanks to Dave Kerr, 191st Tank Battalion WWII Facebook Group for providing the After-Action Reports of the 191st for this time period).

Cpl. Lewis J Cope received the Silver and Bronze Star Medal, a Good Conduct Medal, and two Purple Hearts, one of which was awarded posthumously. His name is etched on a plaque hanging in the main hallway of his high school. He is memorialized in the Plains Cemetery, Oneonta, NY.

If you notice anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact Jim Greenberg at nez13820@gmail.com.

Sources:

3,400 Killed in 20 Counties, Syracuse Herald Journal, June 27, 1946, pg 8.

After Action Report, Forty Fifth Infantry Division, U.S. Army, 191st Tank Bn. 1 Oct. 1944 – 31 Oct 1944.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/125148377/lewis-j-cope: accessed 02 March 2023), memorial page for Lewis J. Cope (10 Mar 1924–15 Oct 1944), Find a Grave Memorial ID 125148377, citing Oneonta Plains Cemetery, Oneonta, Otsego County, New York, USA; Maintained by Kathy Sturgess Ouimet (contributor 47373862). 

Marriage Records. New York Marriages. Various New York County Clerk offices. 

National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri;WWII Draft Registration Cards for New York State, 10/16/1940 - 03/31/1947; Record Group:Records of the Selective Service System, 147

National Archives at Washington DC; Washington DC, USA;Applications for Headstones for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1941; NAID:A1, 2110-C; Record Group Number:92; Record Group Title:Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General

National Archives and Records Administration;Hospital Admission Card Files, ca. 1970 - ca. 1970; NAI:570973; Record Group Number:Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army), 1775-1994; Record Group Title:112

National Archives, accessed at https://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=893&mtch=1&cat=WR26&tf=F&q=Lewis+J+Cope&bc=sl&rpp=10&pg=1&rid=597780, July 26, 2022.

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; Collection:New York, New York Guard Service Cards and Enlistment Records, 1906-1918, 1940-1948; Series:B2000; Film Number:45

New York State Archives; Albany, New York;State Population Census Schedules, 1925; Election District:01; Assembly District:01; City:Laurens; County:Otsego; Page:12

Oneonta Pupils Dedicate Plaque to 39 Who Gave Lives in War, Press and Sun Bulletin, Binghamton, NY, Nov. 11, 1947, pg. 3.

Oneonta’s Gold Star Registry, City of Oneonta, Oneonta Historical Society, Main St., Oneonta, NY. June 2022.

Pvt. Lewis J. Cope Arrives in North Africa, The Oneonta Herald, May 20, 1943.

The Echo, Oneonta High School’s Student Newspaper, Oneonta Historical Society, Main St. Oneonta, NY, June 2022.

WWII Casualty Codes, accessed at http://withmilitaryhonors.com/wwii/code_index.php, August 6, 2022.

Cope Missing Since Oct. 15, Parents Learn, Press and Sun Bulletin, Binghamton, NY, Nov. 4, 1944, pg 2.

Year:1930; Census Place:Oneonta, Otsego, New York; Page:13B; Enumeration District:0031; FHL microfilm:2341370

Year:1940; Census Place:Oneonta, Otsego, New York; Roll:m-t0627-02717; Page:3B; Enumeration District:39-45

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