Antoni Stefan Koper and Sophie Koper papers

Document | Accession Number: 2019.268.6

The collection documents the wartime and post-war experiences of Antoni Stefan Koper, an active member of the Polish Resistance during the German occupation of Warsaw, and his wife Sophie Koper, whom he rescued from the Warsaw ghetto and served as a nurse during the Warsaw Uprising. Included are Antoni’s wartime identification cards, post-war documents from the Polish Armoured Division, letters from Sophie written to him while imprisoned in Oflag II D at Gross Born, personal narratives, and photographs. Papers of Sophie include wartime documents bearing her false identity of Zofia Jabłońska, personal narratives, and materials related to her efforts to get Antoni recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem in 1990.

Biographical material of Antoni Koper includes his wartime Polish identification cards, post-war Polish Armoured Division documents and forms, a Ministry of Labour and National Service application, notes from his studies to learn English in 1947, and photocopies of his obituary. Biographical materials of Sophie Koper primarily consist of wartime identification documents and forms bearing the name of her false identity, Zofia Jabłońska, including an affidavit stating that her identification card had been stolen, possibly used to obtain a duplicate document, and a document stating that she was working for the Red Cross. Other materials include a Certificate of Honor awarded by Yad Vashem posthumously to Antoni as a Righteous Among the Nations, and materials from the Jewish Community Federation recognizing him for his actions during the Holocaust.

Correspondence includes wartime postcards and a letter sent to Antoni from Sophie while he was a prisoner of war in Oflag II D at Gross Born in 1944-1945, and letters from Sophie to Yad Vashem regarding the museum recognizing him as Righteous Among the Nations as well as letters of support from Paulina Krystny Zulawska, Alice Lovell, and someone identified as Bronka.

Writings include a clipping, a biography of Sophie’s Holocaust experiences authored by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, a biography of Antoni authored by Sophie, and personal narratives of Antoni and Sophie. Antoni’s personal narrative describes the Warsaw Uprising, and Sophie’s describes the ghetto experiences of a friend, Janek Goldman, and his wife Janka and son Yulka. There is also an essay by Antoni describing in detail the process and techniques used in the creation of forged documents by the Polish Underground during World War II. This document is undated but post-war and likely aimed at Polish citizens living under Communism in the late 1950s or 1960s.

Photographs consist of post-war depictions of Antoni and Sophie with the Polish Press Corp in Quakenbrück, Germany.

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Date: inclusive: 1943-1999
Language: Polish
English
German
Genre/Form: Personal narratives.
Correspondence.
Photographs.
Extent: 1 box
1 oversize folder
Credit Line: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Peter Koper

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Document Creator: Antoni S. Koper
Sophie Koper
Biography: Antoni Stefan Koper (1906-1990) was born on 6 September 1906 in Warsaw, Poland. He received a degree from the University of Warsaw and he worked for the Polish Press (Prasa Polska). While attending the University of Warsaw he met Sophie Margulies, whom he would marry after the war.

Antoni fought with the Polish Army after Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. After Warsaw was occupied he joined the Polish Resistance where he helped publish underground newspapers, smuggle goods into the Warsaw ghetto, and forge identity documents. In February 1943 he helped Sophie Margulies escape the Warsaw ghetto. Antoni and his mother Marta hid Sophie and several other Jews in their apartment. He was also a member of the Polish Home Army and participated in the Warsaw Uprising begun in August 1944. He was captured in October 1944 and imprisoned in Oflag II D at Gross Born. He escaped the prison and joined the Polish Armoured Division under the British Army.

Antoni and Sophie married after the war and lived in Quakenbrück, Germany where he remained with the Polish Army until 1947 and then worked for the Polish Press Corps. Their son Peter was also born in 1947. Antoni and Sophie immigrated to London in 1947, and the United States in 1952. They settled in Monterey, California where Antoni taught Polish at the Defense Language Institute. They moved to Washington, D.C. in 1958 and Antoni worked as senior editor of a Polish language magazine published by the United States Information Agency. He died in June 1990 and was recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem in July 1990.

Sophie Koper (1916-2011) was born Fanny Margulies in Moscow, Russia to Benjamin and Tatiana Margulies. She had an older sister, Raisa. Her family was Polish and not religious. Sophie’s father left for Odessa for a job and never returned to his family. Sophie and her mother and sister moved to Krasnodar where Tatiana’s parents lived. Around 1920 the family moved to Warsaw where her mother worked as a nurse. After graduation from Gymnasium Sophie attended the University of Warsaw to study journalism. She met her future husband Antoni Stefan Koper while attending the school. In 1938 Sophie worked as a secretary while still attending school.

In 1940 Sophie, her mother, sister, and brother-in-law were forced to move into the Warsaw ghetto. She avoided deportation, but her family were all deported and murdered. She was in contact with Antoni, active in the Polish Resistance, and he helped her escape the Warsaw ghetto in February 1943. He and his mother hid Sophie among others in their apartment. Antoni helped Sophie obtain forged papers, and she assumed the identity of Zofia Jabłońska. She was a nurse for the Polish Home Army during the Warsaw Uprising, and worked as a nurse in a hospital for the duration of the war.

Sophie and Antoni married after the war and lived in Quakenbrück, Germany where he remained with the Polish Army until 1947 and then worked for the Polish Press Corps. Their son Peter was also born in 1947. Sophie and Antoni immigrated to London in 1947, and the United States in 1952. They settled in Monterey, California and later moved to Washington, D.C. in 1958.
System of Arrangement: The collection has been arranged as four series.

Series. 1. Biographical material, 1943-1991
Series 2. Correspondence, 1944-1990
Series 3. Writings, 1945-1999
Series 4. Photographs, 1946-circa 1947
Topical Term: Resistance movements--1940-1950.
Forgers--Poland.
Identification cards--Forgeries--Poland.
Holocaust Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Warsaw.
Holocaust survivors.
Geographic Name: Warsaw (Poland).
Quakenbrück (Germany)
Personal Name: Koper, Antoni Stefan, 1906-1990.
Koper, Sophie, 1916-
Corporate Name: Righteous Gentiles in the Holocaust.
Oflag IID (Concentration camp)
Holder of Originals: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Legal Status: Permanent Collection
Provenance: The collection was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by Peter Koper in 2019. The collections previously numbered 2019.268.1, 2019.271.1, and 2019.272.1 have been incorporated into this collection.
Additional Accession Number: 2019.268.1
2019.271.1
2019.272.1
Primary Number: 2019.268.6
Conditions on Access: There are no known restrictions on access to this material.
Conditions on Use: Material(s) in this collection may be protected by copyright and/or related rights. You do not require further permission from the Museum to use this material. The user is solely responsible for making a determination as to if and how the material may be used.
Copyright Holder: Mr. Peter Koper
: Record last modified: 2023-03-30 15:12:18
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn712883

Also in Antoni Stefan Koper and Sophie Koper collection

The collection consists of Identity documents and papers from Antoni Stefan Koper, postcards from POW camp, Sophie Koper's biography of Antoni and account of apartment raid in Warsaw; Antoni's written memories; also includes Antoni's insignias and Sophie's cap from the Polish First Armored Division; papers and certificate related to Antoni Stefan Koper being honored by Yad Vashem as Righteous Among the Nations; Warsaw telephone directory from 1939/1940 and miscellaneous publications. Also press kit from when Sophie was honored in Richmond, Virginia.