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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 60th Coast Artillery; Battery C, 92nd Coast Artillery; Battery E, 92nd Coast Artillery
  • Location of Service: Fort Vancouver, Washington; Fort Lewis, Washington, Fort Stevens, Oregon; Fort Mills, Philippines; Bilibid Prison, Philippines; Pacific Theater
  • Highest Rank: Captain

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“2/3. Dusk—7 pm. Heard tanks arrive. 1st Cavalry.” (Diary entry, 2/3/1945, noting the beginning of his liberation from Bilibid Prison)

By February 1945, Lieutenant Robert Frank Augur had spent 33 months as a prisoner of war, held by the Japanese in Old Bilibid Prison in the Philippines. During the two and a half years he spent as a POW, Augur made entries in a small pocket diary. He included the names and addresses of fellow prisoners, books contained in a small prison library, and lists he constructed in order to occupy his mind. His diary also narrates what came after the war: he made special notations of his first tastes of ice cream, beer, hot biscuits and steak during his journey homeward. Three months after his liberation, he married his prewar sweetheart, Anna. His arrival back in the United States also allowed him the opportunity to repatriate the diary of his friend and fellow POW George W. Pearcy, who had not survived.

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[ Robert F. Augur's World War II Story, Vol. 1 ]

More Resources

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[ Robert F. Augur's World War II Story, Vol. 2 ]
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[ Uncle Bob's Black Book ]
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[ Coast Artillery Journal July-August 1947 ]
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[ Old Bilibid Prison: Report on American Prisoners of War Interned by the Japanese in the Philippines ]
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[ Newsclippings and photos relating to the life and death of Robert Augur ]
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[ Assorted official documents relating to the military service of Robert Augur ]

Show more resources (35)

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[ Uncle Bob: His World War II Story [biography] ]
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[ Photo Album ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [01/06/1941] ]
Transcript: XML
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [01/24/1941] ]
Transcript: XML
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [02/06/1941] ]
Transcript: XML
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [02/23/1941] ]
Transcript: XML
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [03/09/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [03/21/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [04/06/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [04/13/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [04/20/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [04/27/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [05/11/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [06/01/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [06/08/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [06/14/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [06/22/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [06/29/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [07/06/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [07/31/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [07/24/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [08/10/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [08/22/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [09/01/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [09/07/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [09/14/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [09/28/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [10/19/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/02/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/08/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/16/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/20/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/29/1941] ]
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[ Letter from Robert Augur to Anna [11/30/1941] ]
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[ 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. ]

About this Item

Title

  • Robert Frank Augur Collection

Names

  • Augur, Robert Frank
  • Charnquist, Carol

State of Birth

  • CT

Home State

  • OR

Headings

  • -  Augur, Robert Frank
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.
  • -  Prisoner of War -- United States

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 60th Coast Artillery; Battery C, 92nd Coast Artillery; Battery E, 92nd Coast Artillery
    • Location of Service: Fort Vancouver, Washington; Fort Lewis, Washington, Fort Stevens, Oregon; Fort Mills, Philippines; Bilibid Prison, Philippines; Pacific Theater
    • Highest Rank: Captain
    • Dates of Service: 1939-1945
    • Prisoner of War: Yes
    • Entrance into Service: Commissioned
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Diaries and journals [1 item] -- Handwritten document (collected 1941 - 1945)
  • Photograph: Mixed (Multiple types of photographs) [61 items] -- Photograph (collected 1941 - 2004)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [14 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1942 - 2003)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2016)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [12 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1941 - 1946)
  • Artifact: Artifact [4 items] -- (collected 1941)
  • Manuscript: Civilian papers (certificates, forms, wills, etc) [12 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1946 - 2004)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [13 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1941 - 1985)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 2016)
  • Manuscript: Scrapbooks [1 item] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942 - 1945)
  • Artifact: Artifact [1 item] -- (collected 1941 - 1945)
  • Manuscript: Printed matter [7 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1945 - 2015)
  • Manuscript: Biographical information [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1983 - 2004)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [52 items] -- Photograph (collected 1941)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [32 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1941)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/102536

Cite as

  • Robert Frank Augur Collection (AFC/2001/001/102536), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • pdf

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Augur, Robert Frank, and Carol Charnquist. Robert Frank Augur Collection. 1939. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.102536/.

APA citation style:

Augur, R. F. & Charnquist, C. (1939) Robert Frank Augur Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.102536/.

MLA citation style:

Augur, Robert Frank, and Carol Charnquist. Robert Frank Augur Collection. 1939. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.102536/>.