Two-sided silk escape map of Western Europe owned by US soldier and liberator

Ralph Morris Kopansky was born on May 23, 1912, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was the second of three children born to Sam and Ida Goseman Kopansky. His parents and older sister, Esther (later Fisher), were born in Russia and immigrated to the United States. Sam worked as a clothing dyer. In 1924, Ralph’s younger sister Lillian died. Ralph graduated from high school and went on to receive degrees from the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota College of Law. While attending law school, Ralph worked as a part time general investigator for Carlton Investigative Agency and served in the US Army Reserve. In July 1940, Ralph married Alice Whitver (1914 – 1981). After receiving training, Ralph became an Immigration Patrol Inspector in Ogdensburg, New York. On September 22, 1941, Ralph enlisted for active duty in the Army. On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, and a few days later America entered World War II. In 1943, Ralph was selected for training at Army intelligence school in Chicago, Illinois. As a Captain, he was assigned to the U.S. Army Headquarters XIII Corps, 9th Army, where he served as an Assistant Intelligence Officer. In 1944, Ralph’s Corps was deployed to England for additional training and his and Alice’s first son was born. The Corps fought in France, and by mid-January 1945, had crossed the Siegfried Line and advanced into Germany. On April 4, Ralph’s Corps was with the 4th Armored and the 89th Infantry Divisions, Third Army, when they liberated Ohrdruf concentration camp, a subcamp of Buchenwald and the first concentration camp liberated by US troops. The majority of the inhabitants were dead and many of the remains were badly charred. On orders from higher-up, the guards had “exhumed and burned 1,606 murdered victims in six days in an attempt to destroy the evidence” before evacuating the camp in advance of the arrival of US Army forces. Many other prisoners, too weak or sick to be evacuated, were shot by members of the SS before the US Army arrived. Ralph, part of an inspection tour of the camp, was photographed viewing"the charred remains of burned prisoners shortly after capture of the area.” On May 7, Germany surrendered. Ralph received a Bronze Star and numerous letters of commendation for meritorious service. In January 1946, he was released from active duty as a Major, the Military Intelligence Chief of the XIII Corps, and returned to the Army Reserve. In January 1947, the couple’s second son was born. Later that year, Ralph began a successful career with the US Atomic Energy Commission. First serving as the Chief of Police in Los Alamos, New Mexico, and in the late 1950’s, becoming a Branch Manager in Clarksville, Tennessee. Ralph was an active member of several police associations, the American Legion, Lions Club, the PTA, and served as a board member for several additional groups. In 1962, he retired from the Army Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel. In 1973, he retired and settled in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Ralph, 66, died on July 1, 1978, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

The escape map was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2017 by Dr. Terry Kopansky, the son of Ralph Kopansky. 

Two-sided silk escape map of Western Europe owned by US soldier and liberator 

overall: Height: 28.750 inches (73.025 cm) | Width: 28.625 inches (72.708 cm) 

British, 43 Series topographical silk escape map of Western Europe acquired by Captain Ralph M. Kopansky during his service as a US soldier in Europe from 1944 - 1945. Britain’s Military Intelligence Section, MI9, ran an escape and evasion program that issued this type of map to help soldiers find their way to safety if caught behind enemy lines. Silk maps were used because they were durable, made no noise, and were easy to conceal when carried by a soldier or smuggled into a prisoner of war camp in a board game or record. On September 22, 1941, Ralph, an Army reservist, enlisted for active duty. Following Japan’s December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II. In 1943, he received intelligence training and was assigned to the XIII Corps as an Assistant Intelligence Officer. In 1944, Ralph’s Corps was deployed to Europe. The Corps trained in England, and fought in France, before advancing into Germany, in January 1945. On April 4, the XIII Corps was with the 4th Armored and the 89th Infantry Divisions when they liberated Ohrdruf concentration camp. During an inspection tour of the camp, Ralph was photographed viewing the charred remains of the prisoners. The photograph, 74589, is part of the Museum’s collection. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. 

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Double sided, square, vividly colored silk topographical map of Germany and bordering Western European nations with an inset of the new frontier between Germany and Belgium. Country names are printed in uppercase blue letters and cities and towns in black; the background is offwhite with a light brown border, water in blue, and mountains and elevated areas in yellow and orange. The scale is 1: 1,000,000, with longitude and latitude in the map border. The front is Sheet C, 43/C and maps Holland, Belgium (Except West Coast), France (North East), and Germany (West & Central), as well as Luxembourg. The back is Sheet D, 43/D and maps France (South East), Germany (South West), and Switzerland (Except South East.); the inset: Belgium & Germany (New Frontier.) Legend includes elevation scale, important roadway features, former and present frontiers.