The proud great-great-grandniece of Harriet and lifelong Auburn resident has passed away at the age of 98. Pauline Copes Johnson’s death was announced Monday by the Harriet Tubman Memorial A.M.E Zion Church.
As the congregation’s oldest member, Johnson was deeply connected to the church that honors the legacy of her famous ancestor. The church described her as a cherished matriarch and guardian of family and community history.
Born on Aug. 23, 1927, Johnson graduated from West High School in 1945. Over the years, she worked for New York Telephone as an operator and later served as a secretary for Red Star Express Lines. She and her husband, the late Chauncey Johnson Sr., raised 12 children together.
Johnson did not learn of her connection to Harriet Tubman until she was 25 years old — a revelation that she later described as one of the great honors of her life. From that moment on, she embraced the role of family historian, affectionately calling Tubman “Aunt Harriet.”
Over the years, she represented Tubman’s descendants at Auburn City Council meetings, accepted proclamations marking Harriet Tubman Day, and received several honors herself. Among them were the Auburn/Cayuga NAACP’s Martin Luther King Jr. Millennium Award in 2010 and recognition as one of the New York State Senate’s Women of Distinction in 2017.
In a statement, her church expressed deep sorrow at her passing, calling her “a treasured matriarch” whose life reflected courage, faith, and service. They asked the community to keep her family in their prayers and shared a verse of comfort: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” – Psalm 116:15
Funeral details have not yet been released.
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