Marie Ellen (Bodoh) Coppersmith

Lifespan: 1906-07-10 — 1998-06-10

Summary

Also appears as Mary in some indices. Full name Marie Ellen Bodoh per FamilySearch marriage record.

Born in Maple Creek, Outagamie County, Wisconsin to John Bodoh (age 25) and Mary Young (age 17). Married Claude J Coppersmith on June 22, 1926 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They had six children: Dorothy, Leonard, Ronald, Roger, Robert, and Florence.

Lived on Point Comfort, Nicolet Drive, Green Bay area. Soft-spoken, mild, gentle. Crocheted afghans and pillows. Watched Dallas, Dynasty, Knots Landing with her daughter Dorothy and sister(?) Aggie during evening hours. Collected cactuses when wintering in Arizona.

Claude developed Huntington’s disease; the family wintered near Benson, Arizona in later years. Claude died there in April 1987. Marie later moved to Oregon to live with her daughter Florence. Died June 10, 1998 in Junction City, Oregon at age 91. Buried at Allouez Catholic Cemetery and Chapel Mausoleum in Green Bay — brought back to Wisconsin alongside Claude.

Appears in a five-generation photograph (~1975) with her mother Mary Young, daughter Dorothy, grandson Keith, and great-grandson Don.

Relationships

• Parents: John Bodoh & Mary Young
• Spouse: Claude J Coppersmith (m. 1926-06-22, Green Bay)
• Children: Dorothy Elaine Coppersmith, Leonard Coppersmith, Ronald “Ronnie” Coppersmith, Roger H. Coppersmith, Robert Coppersmith, Florence (Coppersmith) Challe

Sources

• FamilySearch (marriage record confirms full name Marie Ellen Bodoh).
• Children’s obituaries (Roger 2018, Florence 2020).
• Memoir chapters: “Great-Grandma Coppersmith,” “Grandma’s House on the Bay,” “The Oregon Trip.”

Marie’s siblings + half-siblings

• Full siblings (Bodoh, via John Bodoh): Leonard Bodoh (1908–1927, died age 19), Albinus George “Al” Bodoh (1914–1982).
• Half-siblings (Siudzinski, via Mary Young’s remarriage to John A Siudzinski): Luke Siudzinski (dates TBD), Lorraine (Siudzinski) Vincent (1923-06-23 New London – 2014-01-20 De Pere, m. Donald W. Vincent 1944). Half-sibling structure confirmed via Lorraine’s 2014 Cotter Funeral Home obit listing “Luke Siudzinski, Al Bodoh and Marie Coppersmith” as her preceded-in-death siblings.

”Aunt Aggie” — open question (updated 2026-05-11)

Family knowledge (Foggy): Marie, “Aggie” (Agnes), and Marie’s daughter Dorothy crocheted together regularly. Foggy: “I know for almost a fact that Aunt Aggie was Marie’s sister.”

The Siudzinski half-sister hypothesis is ruled out — Lorraine Vincent’s 2014 obit lists only three Marie-generation siblings (Luke Siudzinski, Al Bodoh, Marie Coppersmith) with no Agnes among them. The Bodoh full-sister hypothesis is also ruled out (only Leonard and Albinus George per FamilySearch + the 1920 census).

Three remaining candidates:

1. Albinus George “Al” Bodoh’s wife — Marie’s full brother’s wife = sister-in-law. The most natural “Marie’s sister” in family speech, especially across decades of shared crocheting. Al’s wife’s first name is currently unrecorded; if it’s Agnes, this is the answer.
2. Agnes Antoinette Coppersmith (Claude’s youngest sister, b. 1922, m. Bernard Putman, Green Bay) — Marie’s sister-in-law via her own marriage to Claude. Generation-adjacent to Marie (16 years younger but a peer in the family social structure) and Dorothy (6 years older).
3. A third Siudzinski child not named in Lorraine’s obit (less likely — Lorraine’s obit appeared comprehensive about her preceded-in-death siblings).

Candidate 1 is the most parsimonious if Al’s wife’s name turns out to be Agnes.

Research Notes

• FamilySearch corrected death date from 1998-07-10 to 1998-06-10 (June, not July).
• Junction City death location aligns with Florence’s church (St. Helen) being there.
• Maple Creek, Outagamie County birthplace places the Bodoh family west of Green Bay, toward Appleton — different area than the Coppersmiths (Brown County/Dyckesville).
• Mary Young was only 17 at Marie’s birth — married very young.
• Marie’s six children include Robert (1936-1947, age 11) — losing a young child mid-life is part of her history.
• Marie outlived Claude by 11 years (1987→1998). She moved to Oregon to live with Florence — leaving Wisconsin in her late 80s after Claude’s death is a notable life rupture.

Next-session research targets

• Albinus George Bodoh’s wife — first name resolves the Aunt Aggie question. Likely findable on Al’s FindAGrave memorial, his Wisconsin death record (he died 1982), or a 1940/1950 census household listing.
• Marie’s 1998 obituary — would confirm full sibling structure including any unrecorded half-sibling. Likely published in Eugene Register-Guard (Oregon) and Green Bay Press-Gazette simultaneously.
• FindAGrave Memorial ID for Marie at Allouez Catholic — not retrievable via public web; needs direct FindAGrave search.