Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vhp.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/2015655277
In English.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
Arranged in four series: Manuscripts, Photographs, Artifacts, and Computer Files.
Manuscripts are arranged alphabetically by type of material.
Accessioned, 2016.
Duplication of collection materials may be restricted.
Collection is open for research; access restrictions apply. To request collection materials, please contact the Veterans History Project at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vhp.contact
Selected items from the Robert Frank Augur collection are available on the Library of Congress web site at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/vh016010.102536.
Robert Frank Augur Collection (AFC/2001/001/102536), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
Robert Frank Augur was born in Meriden, Connecticut, on April 18, 1910, the first of six children born to Frank Augur and Nellie Symonds Augur. In 1924, the family moved to Oregon, and Augur enrolled in Benson Polytechnic High School in Portland, where he studied mathematics and electrical sciences, and joined the Army’s Cadet Military Training Corps. After graduating from high school in 1928, Augur was admitted to Oregon State College to study engineering, but could not afford to attend. Instead he went to work, first selling women’s shoes, then in an electricians’ supply store, and ultimately as a freight handler for Union Pacific Railroad. In his spare time he completed correspondence courses to help advance toward a reserve officer’s commission, and he served with an Army Reserve unit, training at Fort Vancouver, Washington, Fort Stevens, Oregon, and Fort Lewis, Washington. In October 1939, he earned a reserve commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Coast Artillery Corps.
On December 2, 1940, Augur was called to active duty at Fort Stevens, and the following month he was assigned to Fort Mills, Corregidor, in the Philippines. His initial assignment was as a junior staff officer with a searchlight battery of the 60th Coast Artillery. He subsequently took command of E Battery, 92nd Coast Artillery, a unit made up of 105 Philippine Scouts. E Battery served as a guard battalion for approximately 900 civil prisoners, and commanded a pair of 155 millimeter guns protecting the entrance to Manila Harbor. He went on to serve as executive officer of the Battery Kysor gun crew.
On April 12, 1942, Augur was injured by heavy artillery fire, resulting in the amputation of his leg. After the fall of Corregidor, Augur was taken prisoner by the Japanese, and transferred to Bilibid Prison. Augur was held as a prisoner of war (POW) for 33 months. During this time, he was able to keep a diary in which he made some brief notes about events, and made lists of books and food, and noted the names and addresses of fellow prisoners. Bilibid Prison was liberated on February 5, 1945, and Augur soon began a ten day journey back to the United States, where he recuperated at Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco, California, and Bushnell Army Hospital in Brigham City, Utah.
On April 28, 1945, Augur married Anna Christina Anderson, a friend with whom he had corresponded prior to the war. On December 18, 1945, he was discharged with the rank of Captain. Augur toured with other decorated veterans to promote the sale of war bonds, and then moved to Washington, DC, to work for the Republican National Committee as Director of Veterans’ Activities and as Executive Secretary of the Republican Veterans’ League. Augur resigned these positions in 1946, and he and Anna returned to Oregon, where Augur went to work in the freight shipping business until his retirement in 1981.
Robert Frank Augur died on March 9, 2000, and was buried with full military honors at Willamette National Cemetery. On April 24, 2004, a rail deployment facility at Fort Bliss, Texas, was named in his honor.
Collection includes biographical information, civilian papers, clippings, correspondence, a diary, military papers, printed matter, a scrapbook, photographs, and artifacts relating to Augur's service in the United States Army during World War II.
MS01: Brief personal resume written by the veteran (1983); list of medals and awards; "Uncle Bob: His World War II Story," pamphlet detailing the veteran's life and service, written by his niece's husband.
MS02: Correspondence relating to the veteran's work at the Republican National Committee (1946); Correspondence relating to the veteran's work at Bower Trucking and Warehouse Company (1976); Certificate recognizing 50 years of membership in the National Model Railroad Association (1999); memorial program (2000); correspondence, program and Governor's proclamation relating to the dedication of the Lieutenant Robert F. Augur Rail Facility at Fort Bliss, Texas (2004).
MS03: Clippings relating to the veteran's service and return from the Philippines, family history, an obituary, and an article about the Lieutenant Robert F. Augur Rail Facility at Fort Bliss.
MS04: Correspondence from the veteran to his family, and one letter to the veteran from his mother, which was sent while he was a prisoner of war and was returned to sender. Includes several lengthy typed letters written before the war, postcards sent while the veteran was a POW, and letters sent after his liberation, prior to his return to the United States. Topics covered include: finances; weather; uniforms; standing orders; duties; housing; transporting prisoners; escaped prisoner; living conditions of local people; airman stealing and crashing a plane; gasoline rationing; conditions after liberation (1941-1945).
MS05: Two letters from comrades, including one from a Philippine Scout, recounting the events of the day Augur was injured (1946).
MS06: Diary Augur kept prior to the war, and maintained throughout his captivity. He recorded range and fuse settings for fire of his 155mm guns, a personal property inventory, disciplinary charges against troops he commanded, volumes in the prison library, food, names and addresses of fellow prisoners, list of postcards sent home, chronology of events surrounding his liberation and journey back to the United States.
MS07: Orders regarding reception for incoming officers (1941); roster and list of armaments (n.d.); orders awarding veteran the Silver Star (04/09/1942); orders awarding veteran the Purple Heart (1942); communique and Record of Award of Decoration, Distinguished Service Cross (1942); Letter of interest to liberated Army personnel (02/26/1945); appointment to the rank of captain (04/02/1945); transcribed copy of attachment to reparations claim (1946); Bronze Star Medal certificate (09/27/1985).
MS08: Page from Augur's high school year book (1928); brief description of Corregidor Island; Coast Artillery Journal list of prisoners of war (POWs) (1947); Japanese maps of Corregidor, Bataan and Cavite; page 1 of a report on Old Bilibid Prison, prepared by the Office of the Provost Marshal General (11/19/1945); bibliography of books owned by Augur; Japanese POW Story, by Vicki Creighton, daughter of ex-POW John Creighton (Ex-POW Bulletin, June 1996).
MS09: Scrapbook kept by the veteran's wife, Anna. Contains clippings, photographs, event programs, and correspondence relating to the veteran's service and post-war activities, including participation in war bond drives.
PH01-PH61: Portraits of the veteran during and after his service, views of Fort Mills, Philippine Scouts, Augur participating in War Bond drives, wedding photograph, images of the Augur family visiting Fort Bliss, Texas, for the dedication of the Lieutenant Robert Augur Rail Deployment Facility.
AR01: Sewing needle stored in the spine of the veteran's diary while he was held as a prisoner of war (POW) in the Philippines.
AR02: Pre-war and Japanese occupation money from the Philippines.
Digital content available
CF01: Manuscripts and Photographs (MS01-MS08, PH01-PH61) in PDF.
Digital content available
CF02: Scrapbook (MS09) in JPEG format.