Collection Summary
Thomas H. Robbins Papers
1918-1971
(bulk 1920-1962)
1918-1971
(bulk 1920-1962)
MSS84346
Robbins, Thomas H.
(Thomas Hinckley), 1900-1972
2,250
items
11 containers plus 1 classified
4.4 linear feet
English
Collection material in
English
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
United States naval
officer. Correspondence, duty orders, logbooks, biographical material,
speeches, and other papers relating to Robbins's naval career and emphasizing
his specialty in naval aviation.
Selected Search Terms
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.
People
Robbins, Thomas H. (Thomas Hinckley), 1900-1972.
Organizations
Sandpiper (Minesweeper)
United States. Navy--Aviation.
United States. Navy.
Subjects
Aeronautics.
Aircraft industry--Military aspects.
Airplanes, Military.
Military intelligence.
Military weapons.
Naval aviation.
Naval history, Modern--20th century.
Navies.
Warships.
Places
Aleutian Islands (Alaska)--Surveys.
Europe--Politics and government.
Occupations
Naval officers.
Provenance
The papers of Thomas H. Robbins, U.S. naval officer, were given to the
Library of Congress by the Naval Historical Foundation in 1998.
Processing History
The papers of Thomas H. Robbins were arranged and described in 1999
and the finding aid revised in 2008.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Thomas H.
Robbins is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17,
U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Thomas H. Robbins are open to research. Researchers are
advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many
collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these
items for research use.
Security Classified Documents
Government regulations control the use of security classified material
in this collection. Manuscript Division staff can furnish information
concerning access to and use of classified materials.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, Thomas H. Robbins Papers, Naval
Historical Foundation Collection, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress,
Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1900, May 11
Born, Paris, France
1919
Graduated, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.
1919
1922
Served consecutively aboard the Kroonland (liner), Utah
(battleship), and Sturtevant (destroyer)
1922
1924
Served aboard the Scorpion
(patrol vessel converted yacht) in Turkish waters
1923
1924
Served aboard Submarine Chaser No. 96 in the Black Sea
1924
1925
Served consecutively aboard the destroyers
MacLeish and MacFarland
1925
1927
Instructor, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis,
Md.
1928
Served aboard the Utah
(battleship)
Ordered for flight training and designated naval aviator,
Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Fla.
1928
1929
Scouting Squadron Five-S (aviation unit),
Concord (light cruiser)
1929
1931
Executive officer, Scouting Squadron Six-S (aviation unit)
aboard the Cincinnati (light cruiser)
1930
Married Barbara Little
1931
1932
Assistant operations officer, Naval Air Station, Anacostia,
D.C.
1932
1933
Aide to the chief of Bureau of Aeronautics, Navy Department,
Washington, D.C.
1933
1935
Commander, Sandpiper
(minesweeper)
1935
1936
Scouting Squadron Four-B, Langley
(aircraft carrier)
1936
1937
Attended Naval War College, Newport, R.I.
1937
1939
Aviation officer, Naval War College and Naval Torpedo Station,
Newport, R.I.
1939
1940
Navigator, Lexington (aircraft
carrier)
1940
1941
Aviation officer, staff of Commander Scouting Force and
Commander Task Force Three
1941
Liaison officer between the Office of the Chief of Naval
Operations and the commanding general, Army Air Force Command, Washington,
D.C.
1942
Liaison officer between Headquarters, Commander in Chief,
United States Fleet, and Army Air Force Combat Command, Washington,
D.C.
1942
1943
Aviation plans officer, Headquarters, Commander in Chief,
United States Fleet
1943
1944
Naval aviation officer, Army and Navy College, Washington,
D.C.
1944
Received letter of commendation with authorization to wear
the commendation ribbon
Temporary duty, Air Force Pacific Fleet aboard the
Essex (aircraft carrier)
1945
Commanding officer, Lexington
(aircraft carrier)
Received Legion of Merit with Combat Distinguishing Device
"V"
1945
1948
Assigned consecutively to Office of the Deputy Chief of Naval
Operations for Air, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, and Office of the
Secretary of the Navy
1948
1949
Commander, Carrier Division Seventeen
1949
1952
Navy member, Joint Strategic Survey Committee, Joint Chiefs of
Staff, Washington, D.C.
1952
1953
Commander, Carrier Division Two
1953
1956
Chief of staff and later president, United States Naval War
College, Newport, R.I.
1957
1960
President, Navy Discharge Review Board, Bureau of Naval
Personnel, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.
1960
1962
Commandant, Potomac River Naval Command, Naval Weapons Plant,
Washington, D.C.
1962
Awarded a gold star in lieu of a second Legion of
Merit
Retired from the navy
1972, Dec. 12
Died, New London, Conn. [?]
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Thomas Hinckley Robbins (1900-1972) span the years
1918-1971, with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period 1920-1962. The
collection reflects a career devoted to naval aviation from the 1920s to the
1960s. Featured in the papers are official and personal correspondence, orders
for duty, naval aviation log books, biographical information, speeches, and
material relating to Robbins's service aboard the minesweeper
Sandpiper.
Robbins's official correspondence contains routine information on
examinations, appointments, naval personnel, and naval aviation. Of note in the
correspondence are memoranda to naval intelligence on the inspections of
airplanes by foreign dignitaries, foreign aviation activities, espionage,
foreign ships and armaments, and meetings with individuals such as Rachid
Montan Pacha, a Syrian leader visiting New York in 1925 to sell jewels. A
majority of the personal correspondence is written to and from naval personnel
relating to naval aviation, aircraft, aircraft companies, and European
politics.
Material relating to the Sandpiper covers
the period 1933-1935 when the ship sailed in Alaskan waters and participated in
the Aleutian Islands survey expedition of 1935. Robbins's personal operations
diary and narratives for this time are supplemented by newspaper articles
written about the Sandpiper.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material or
subject and therein chronologically.
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm98084346]
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Awards and certificates,
1949-1954, 1962, 1969-1971
1949-1954, 1962, 1969-1971
1
Biographical information,
1930, 1943, 1953-1959, undated
1930, 1943, 1953-1959, undated
1
Cartoons by John Thomason,
1938, undated
1938, undated
1
Correspondence
1
Official
1
1918-1954
1918-1954
(6
folders)
2
1955-1965
1955-1965
(2
folders)
2
Personal
2
1927-1939
1927-1939
(5
folders)
3
1940-1946
1940-1946
(6
folders)
4
1947-1952
[
See also Classified
](robbins1)
1947-1952
(6
folders)
5
1953-1955
1953-1955
(6
folders)
6
1956-1957
1956-1957
(5
folders)
6
1958
1958
(1
folder)
7
(2
folders)
7
1959
1959
(2
folders)
7
1960
1960
(2
folders)
8
(1
folder)
8
1961-1964
1961-1964
(5
folders)
8
Lexington (aircraft carrier),
1939-1940, undated
1939-1940, undated
9
Log books for aviation,
1928-1959
1928-1959
9
Miscellany,
1946, undated
1946, undated
9
Naval newspapers,
1921-1923
1921-1923
9
Orders for duty
9
1919-1953
1919-1953
(3
folders)
10
1954-1964
1954-1964
10
Sandpiper (minesweeper)
10
Correspondence re Aleutian
Islands survey expedition,
1935
1935
10
Narrative of activities,
1933-1935
1933-1935
10
Newspaper clippings,
1934-1935
1934-1935
10
Personal operations diary,
1934-1935
1934-1935
10
Speeches
10
1946-1955
1946-1955
(2
folders)
11
1956-1962
1956-1962
11
Writings,
1939, 1956
1939, 1956
CL 1
Classified material
CL 1
Correspondence
CL 1
Personal
CL 1
1952
CL 1
20 Oct. (Container 4)
20 Oct. (Container 4)
CL 1
4 Dec. (Container 4)
4 Dec. (Container 4)