ROBERT F. COATES, LTJG, USN

Robert Coates '30

Date of birth: May 16, 1909

Date of death: October 23, 1935

Age: 26

Lucky Bag

From the 1930 Lucky Bag:

ROBERT FORESMAN COATES

Wausau, Wisconsin

"Bob" "Toots" "Rollo"

A PRODUCT of the big evergreen forests, Bob came to us in their deepest shade. It didn't take long, however, for old Dad Neptune to apply his lines and convert him into a non-reg, full-fledged sailor boy. A few close run-ins with the almighty academics and the trials of an "old-Navy" Plebe year molded the plastic potentialities into real manhood with all the determination and sincerity that have characterized Bob throughout his middy's career.

Coming here with an enviable prep school athletic and activity record, Bob found his weight too big a handicap for his beloved football and applied his brimming energy to class athletics and organization.

Girls and studies shared equally in Bob's boredom, and only on rare occasions did the "fair ones" have the pleasure of his tricky feet at the "Dahlgren Brawls." Ever a willing helper, Bob's quiet ways have found a permanent place in the hearts of his classmates, and of everyone else having the gift of his friendship.

As a gentleman and scholar, as well as a true pal, you'll live forever in the sacred memories of Academy days, Bob. May the best of everything be yours.

Class Football 3, 2, 1; Track 4, 3; Gymkhana 4, 2 P.O.

ROBERT FORESMAN COATES

Wausau, Wisconsin

"Bob" "Toots" "Rollo"

A PRODUCT of the big evergreen forests, Bob came to us in their deepest shade. It didn't take long, however, for old Dad Neptune to apply his lines and convert him into a non-reg, full-fledged sailor boy. A few close run-ins with the almighty academics and the trials of an "old-Navy" Plebe year molded the plastic potentialities into real manhood with all the determination and sincerity that have characterized Bob throughout his middy's career.

Coming here with an enviable prep school athletic and activity record, Bob found his weight too big a handicap for his beloved football and applied his brimming energy to class athletics and organization.

Girls and studies shared equally in Bob's boredom, and only on rare occasions did the "fair ones" have the pleasure of his tricky feet at the "Dahlgren Brawls." Ever a willing helper, Bob's quiet ways have found a permanent place in the hearts of his classmates, and of everyone else having the gift of his friendship.

As a gentleman and scholar, as well as a true pal, you'll live forever in the sacred memories of Academy days, Bob. May the best of everything be yours.

Class Football 3, 2, 1; Track 4, 3; Gymkhana 4, 2 P.O.

Loss

Robert was lost on October 23, 1935 when his aircraft collided with another and crashed near Fort Barrancas, Florida during pilot training.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Robert graduated from Wausau high school in 1926. “Bobby,” Science Course. Wahiscan yearbook Business Manager 4; Football (tackle, left guard) 3, 4; Track 3; Second Team Basketball 2; Class Track 2, 3, 4; Class Basketball 2, 3; Skyrocket newspaper 2, 3; “W” Club 4; Hi-Y 2, 3, 4; Treasurer 3, 4; Harmony Hounds 3; Athletic Council 1; Three One-Act Plays 2, 4. In his senior year, he played Mr. Anson, a father, in the play “Only Once.” He was the business manager of the newly founded Wausau Athletic Review. He won honor ribbons in Mathematics and Science, and he won an honor pin for excellence in scholarship and school activities.
Robert, his mother, brother and two sisters attended the Army-Navy game in Chicago in November, 1926.
On February 16, 1935, he married Frances Elizabeth Sheffield in Tarboro, North Carolina.
He was also survived by two sisters, Josephine (Mrs. W. B. Marshall) of Milwaukee and Helen (Mrs. Hibbard Broadfoot) of Shorthills, N. J.

He is buried in Wisconsin.

Photographs

From his high school yearbook; he was "Mr. Anson" in the play "Only Once"
From his high school yearbook
From his high school yearbook

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.