LTC Cole Purple Heart

[Blacksmith]

This is answered in this topic above.

 

Here is a Robert G Cole who received a PH. He could have had it privately engraved.

 

Do people think the engraving is period?

 

[smwinter207]

This is answered in this topic above.

 

 

Anyway, this looks period to me. I think it's a beautiful PH. Too bad they (probably) assigned it to the wrong soldier.

[manayunkman]

The engraving looks period to me too.

 

If the family didn’t release it then where did it come from?

[Dave]

I combined the multiple threads discussing this medal and also moved it under "Medals and Decorations".

[Dave]

The engraving looks period to me too.

 

If the family didn’t release it then where did it come from?

 

 

It's a privately engraved Purple Heart to one of the other "Robert G. Cole" members of the Army or Army Air Force, possibly the one down in Alabama who earned the Purple Heart as a WIA.

 

Sadly, it's a feel-good story and the common sense response that this is undoubtedly NOT the Medal of Honor recipient Robert G. Cole's Purple Heart wouldn't fly.

 

I wish my book were published...I could then refer people to my book and say "that kind of engraving is not at all included in the book I wrote" but unfortunately, the book won't be available till after the beginning of 2020...not much help now.

 

Dave

[jguy1986]

There was more fact checking here.

 

What network broke this story?

 

I believe it all started at the Long Island or the San Antonio news site (I haven't double checked the published dates), and was then basically copied and pasted onto the FOX site. The writers at these larger outlets don't knave the resources to double check things, their jobs are just to churn out content and assume the smaller stations did their homework. Unfortunately, nobody really did.

 

It would have taken someone at news companies with knowledge of PH engravings to point out the flaw so quickly visible to our small circle of collectors, but this forum is a relatively small group of dedicated scholars. In one of the articles, the lady who found the PH basically said she googled the name, and made the assumption it had to have been LTC Cole's. I can't blame her for not knowing rather minute details to the average person, but it's sad that no one triple checked before going through with the ceremony. People will believe what they want, especially for a feel-good story.

[Ray42]

While my initial reaction is that it is nice that the school has a medal that to any casual observer appears to have been awarded to their namesake, my worry is that the medal is likely not going to remain in the possession of the school forever, and this story essentially manufactures a fake pedigree for the next time it comes up on the market.