CHARLES KOPP

Last week we featured Gus Vervaras, restaurant owner and long-time member of the Albion Conservation Club. This week we’d like to feature another sportsman in Albion’s history: Charles Kopp (1880-1960). Born in Manchester, Charlie came to Albion as an infant with his parents. At the age of 12, he lost his left hand in a hunting accident. He fell down and got snow in the barrel of his shotgun. Later when he shot at a rabbit, the barrel exploded and blew off his hand. He lived the balance of his life with a prosthesis, mainly a hook, but he also had an artificial hand with a leather glove on it which he could screw on in place of the hook.

Despite his handicap, Charlie became good at whatever he did. His nephew, Rex Barnes wrote me recently, “He could drive a car, dress himself, all the normal things, but the only thing I can remember that he couldn’t do was tie a necktie. My mom, Reta always tied it for him when he went out. He seemed to have a way of developing a way to solve all his problems. He loved to play cards and became great a shuffling a deck of cards with one hand. No one could figure out just how he did it but he could shuffle and deal like an expert.” Charles was an avid hunter and fisherman, and went on numerous trips.

Did his handicap prevent him from working? Of course not. Charlie was employed at the Albion Malleable Iron Company for a total of 61 years! Is there anyone else who can beat that record? He began work at the Malleable in October, 1896 at the age of 16 when the firm was still located in downtown Albion. Mr. Kopp worked as a coremaker and molder, and later as a foreman, serving a total of 35 years. In 1940 he became a plant guard, a position he held until his retirement in January 1958.

From our Historical Notebook this week we present a photo of Charles Kopp after having returned from a hunting trip to the Upper Peninsula circa 1927. How many of our readers remember Charlie Kopp? Special thanks to Rex Barnes for supplying the information and photo for this week’s article.

	Frank Passic — Albion Historian An Albion native and 1971 graduate of Albion High School, Frank Passic has been researching and writing Albion history since 1976. He is the creator of the Albion Historical Notebook, with hundreds of articles appearing weekly in the Morning Star and The Recorder. Frank maintains an extensive personal archive including Riverside Cemetery records, family surname files, genealogies, photographs, city directories, and high school yearbooks. Support his 2026 research at the Historic Albion Michigan Facebook page. Historical Notebook \| From the Archives \| Subject List \| 100 Years Ago \| Alphabetical Index \| Frank Passic Home Page \| Albion History Books \| Contact Frank
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