Frederic Williams Couper

Other Events and Attributes:

• FindaGrave Memorial ID: 81686115
• _UID: 151E66E4B4B94C13AB3D27C56D499C90FF5D

Notes:

FindaGrave Memorial ID:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81686115

Died:
Frederic Maxwell Couper died in 1934 in Binghamton, NY, age 24 after a three year illness. He was the son of Mrs. Walter T. Couper and was widely known in scholastic and athletic circles. His death ocurred at his home Thursday afternoon.

Known to friends as "Ricky", Mr. Couper contracted a rare bone disease about three years ago, believed to have resulted from injuries suffered while playing football for Binghamton Central High School and Clarkson Institue of Technology.

His case attracted wide attention among the nation's leading surgeons. His condition became worse despite treatment by specialists at Memorial Hospital in New York City. The first symptoms of the disease were noted in 1931. (It would be after his death when it was realized he had metastasized bone cancer.)

Mr. Couper attended Alexander Hamilton school and was a graduate from Central High School in 1929. While in high school he was prominent in athletics , winning his varsity football letters in 1926-27-28. He was a member of the track team for three years and in 1927 won the state sectional championship in the mile run in Ithaca.

His prominence in athletics continued at Clarkson Tech, which he entered in September, 1929. He was president of the freshman class and was elected president of the junior class when he was forced to leave college because of illness. In his sophomore year he was awarded the Clarkson Sportsmanship medal, one of the highest honors the college can bestow.

At Clarkson, he was on the freshman football team and later given a place on the on the varsity team. He was sports editor of the Intergrator student publication of Clarkson Tech and was a member of Lamba Iota Fraternity.

He is survived by his mother Ruth Delia Williams Couper, his brother Edgar Williams Couper and two sisters, Rachael Williams and Mary Williams Couper. The funeral will be held Saturday afternoon at 4PM at Cornell-Dibble Funeral Home. Interment to follow in Couper plot in the Chenango Valley Cemetery, Binghamton, NY.