us-005578-irn43787-irn106407
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
physical characterisitics and technical requirements: Bronze washed, 5 point star metal medal with an attached ribbon. It has a raised, 10 point sunburst with rays extending to the points of the star and raised lines along the arms. In the center is a small, raised, 5 point star. The back has a raised circle with embossed English text around the edge. At the top of the medal is a square suspension ring with a grosgrain ribbon looped around it. The ribbon has 7 vertical stripes: narrow white, wide red, narrow white, center blue, narrow white, wide red, and narrow white. Sewn to the back is a flat, rectangular, gold colored metal bar with a ribbon slot at the top and a hinged pin with a c-clasp below.
has or had some members with language: deu
is or was included in: us-005578-irn43787
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-cb/004289
type: RecordSet
scope and content: Bronze Star Medal awarded to Sidney Cooley for heroic, meritorious achievement as a US Army officer in Europe from January 1945 to September 1946. On January 1, 1945, Sidney’s Division was deployed to Marseilles, France, and quickly advanced north into Germany. The 63rd Infantry crossed the Siegfried Line and fought through central Germany, arriving in Landsberg am Lech by April. Sidney was promoted and assigned to General Louis Hibb’s staff. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. Sidney was promoted to Captain, assigned to the Third Army, and placed on occupational duty in the American zone. He was selected to serve as the deputy military governor in Bayreuth. He assisted with regional rebuilding efforts and with the de-Nazification program. Sidney, a lawyer by training, served as prosecutor for the U.S. military government in Bayreuth, as well as a judge, hearing approximately 1,800 cases involving civilian violations of military government. As a Yiddish speaking, Jewish American official, Sidney’s presence in Bayreuth attracted many displaced Holocaust survivors looking for a place to settle while waiting to emigrate. Among his efforts to help the community, was the establishment of an agrarian training program to train more than 300 hopeful Palestinian settlers and prepare them for life as farmers. Sidney worked very closely with the Jewish community and when he left Bayreuth, they thanked him with an eloquent citation.
has or had some members with language: eng
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn43787-irn106407/acquisitions/1
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn43787-irn106407/alternateIDs/1
has or had holder: us-005578
date: 1945 January-1945 May
title: Bronze Star medal with ribbon presented to a Jewish US soldier
identifier: irn106407
has record set type: Item
history: Sidney Milton Cooley was born on December 21, 1913, in Springfield, Massachusetts, to a Jewish couple, Moses Louis and Sadie F. Cooley. Moses was born on March 24, 1873, in Kletsk, Belarus, to Jacob and Rivka Bearg Koolesh (later Cooley). He had two brothers and a sister. His family immigrated to the United States around 1900. Sadie was born on July 1, 1885, in Russia, to Itzik and Ruth Bearg Brodnitzky (later Broad). She had three sisters and three brothers. Her family immigrated to the United States around 1903. On October 27, 1908, Moses married Sadie in Springfield. Moses was a merchant and ran a dry goods store. Sidney had three older brothers. Philip (1909-1910) and Michael (1912), who both died young, and Edward (1911 -1998). On January 21, 1932, Sidney’s 58 year old father, Moses, died. Sidney graduated from high school and attended college. He worked as a manager in a tire shop, a piano player, and an orchestra conductor. In 1940, he earned a law degree from Northeastern University and was admitted to the bar. He and his brother Edward, also a lawyer, opened their own law practice, Cooley & Cooley. His mother married a family friend, Max Schreck (1883-1963.) Soon after the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II. On June 8, 1942, Sidney was drafted into the US Army and sent to Officer Candidate School at Camp Lee in Virginia. On April 30, 1943, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and in June, he was assigned to the 63rd Infantry Division, nicknamed Blood and Fire. His Division spent more than a year training in Mississippi. On January 1, 1945, Sidney’s Division was deployed to Marseilles, France. The Division moved north to Sarreguemines and crossed the Saar River into Germany on February 17. The 63rd advanced across the Siegfried Line and through many cities, including Worms and Mannheim. By April, the Division was in Landsberg am Lech. Sidney was promoted and assigned to General Louis Hibb’s staff as a divis…
history: The bronze star was donated to the Hatikvah Holocaust Education Center in Springfield, MA, by Judge Sidney Cooley. It was transferred to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2011, following the closure of the Hatikvah Holocaust Education Center in 2010.
record resource extent: overall: Height: 2.875 inches (7.303 cm) | Width: 1.500 inches (3.81 cm) | Depth: 0.250 inches (0.635 cm)