My Genealogy Hound

R. M. COPE. The subject of this sketch is a native of Canada, but comes of American ancestry. His father, David Cope, was born in Canada in 1803 and still lives there, being a resident of the village of St. George, Brant county, Ont. He owns a farm in the vicinity which has been in the family for sixty-five years. He is now well advanced in years, but well preserved in mind and body, having led an active, industrious, and useful life, and is highly esteemed as a citizen in the community where he resides. He served as magistrate for upwards of thirty years and has been a member of the Methodist church for over half a century, serving as steward and class leader the greater part of the time. Mr. Cope’s mother, who bore the maiden name of Amanda Patrick, was born in Massachusetts, in 1805. She was reared, however, in Canada, having been taken there by her parents when a child.

Mr. Cope’s paternal grandfather,Thomas Cope, was a native of New Jersey, and served in the war of 1812, his father having moved to Canada shortly after the close of the Revolution. There were five sons, one of whom was killed in the War of 1812, the others being proverbially long-lived — all attaining to about ninety years of age. The maternal grandmother, whose maiden name was Fannie Culp, was also a native of New Jersey.

David Cope and Amanda Patrick were married in 1826, and had born to them six children, as follows — Malinda, Francis, Charlotte, R. M., Jonas and Lewis. The subject of this notice was born in Ontario, Canada, in 1829. He was reared in his native place and in accordance with the custom of the place and times, received the rudiments of an ordinary English education. He remained on his father’s farm till he reached the age of sixteen, at which time he began the race of life for himself. He learned the blacksmith’s trade in his youth and followed it for some years after reaching his majority. He came to the States in 1859, making his first stop in St. Lawrence county, N. Y. There he engaged at his trade till 1864. That year he enlisted in the Union army, going into company F, First New York light artillery. His command was mostly on garrison duty about Washington. He served till after the surrender, being discharged on the fifteenth day of June, 1865, at Elmira, N. Y. Returning thence to St. Lawrence county, he lived there till 1876, when he went back to his old home in Canada. He remained in Canada only two years, coming again to the United States and settling, in 1878, in Kearney county, Nebr., taking a homestead in section 10, township 5, range 16 west. That was an early date for that part of the state, and Mr. Cope was one of the first settlers of that locality. There were only three houses in sight of his homestead and he underwent all the hardships and privation incident to the opening of the country. With the appearance of good crops his affairs assumed a prosperous condition and they have steadily improved from year to year. Mr. Cope is comparatively well fixed. In addition to his farming interests he owns considerable stock.

R. M. Cope and Isabell Mclntyre were married in Paris, Canada, in 1850, Mrs. Cope being a native of Scotland, born in 1829, and brought in 1834 to Canada by her parents. To this union have been born five children — Charlotte, now wife of George W. Clemons, residing in Canada; Mary, wife of Alexander Cummings, residing in Dakota; Bessie, still with her parents; John, who died in 1862, at the age of five, and a daughter, who died in infancy.