Robert Coppersmith

Lifespan: 1936 — 1947-03-02

Summary

Born in Green Bay to Claude J and Marie Ellen (Bodoh) Coppersmith. Died March 2, 1947 in Green Bay at age 11. Buried at Allouez Catholic Cemetery and Chapel Mausoleum in Green Bay.

Robert died as a child. Cause of death unknown. He is listed among the deceased siblings in both Roger’s (2018) and Florence’s (2020) obituaries.

Relationships

• Parents: Claude J Coppersmith & Marie Ellen (Bodoh) Coppersmith
• Siblings: Dorothy Elaine Coppersmith, Leonard C Coppersmith, Ronald “Ronnie” Coppersmith, Roger H. Coppersmith, Florence (Coppersmith) Challe

Sources

• FamilySearch person record (birth year, death date, burial).
• Sibling obituaries (Roger 2018, Florence 2020) list him as preceded in death.
• MyHeritage confirms 1936 birth, 1947 death, age 11, Wisconsin, parents Claud + Marie.
• Roger H Coppersmith FindAGrave Memorial #212849405 lists Robert as 1936-1947 sibling.

Research Notes

• Cause of death unknown — for an 11-year-old in March 1947 Green Bay, candidates include polio (Wisconsin had outbreaks late-1940s), accident, pneumonia/post-flu complications, or scarlet fever. The Green Bay Press-Gazette death notice from early March 1947 would name cause.
• Died same year Dorothy married Donald Krumpos (Sept 27, 1947). Dorothy was 19, Robert had just died 6 months earlier — Dorothy’s wedding sat against the family’s most recent grief.
• Buried at Allouez Catholic Cemetery alongside parents Claude (d. 1987) and Marie (d. 1998). Robert was the first of Claude + Marie’s family to be buried there — established the family plot 40 years before his parents joined him.
• Spacing of children before/after Robert: Florence 1932 → Robert 1936 → Ronald ~1939. Three-year gaps either side suggest no infant losses immediately adjacent; the 1929→1932 gap (between Leonard and Florence) is the more likely site of an unrecorded loss.

Next-session research target

• Green Bay Press-Gazette, early March 1947 — death notice and any news item about a child Coppersmith death. Would name cause + funeral arrangements + any surviving-siblings list (would also serve as confirmation of birth date).
• FindAGrave Memorial ID — likely indexed under Robert Coppersmith at Allouez Catholic; not retrievable via public web search.