Roscoe Robert Shaw (1879 - 1956)

Born 6 Aug 1879 in Groveport, Franklin County, Ohio, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Agatha Mary (Sites) Shaw — married 5 Sep 1922 in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, USA at the County Courthouse

Descendants

Died 1 Oct 1956 at age 77 in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, USA

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Biography

Roscoe Robert "Ross" Shaw was born on August 6, 1879 in Groveport, Franklin County, Ohio. He was the second of three sons born to Robert Alexander Shaw and the former Hannah Platter Decker. The Shaws' first son, who was not named, was born on October 24, 1877, but died during childbirth. At the time of his birth, Roscoe's father was serving his first of several terms as the Mayor of Groveport. When Roscoe decided to enlist for military service in U.S. Army during the late 1890s, he took the opportunity to change his legal name to Robert Ross Shaw. To his fellow soldiers, and eventually his friends and family, he would come to be known as "Ross". In 1898, he joined the Army's elite Volunteer Signal Corps, a group of soldiers dedicated to establishing, maintaining, and in some cases, disrupting communications between various parties involved in the war. Their first missions were to cut underwater telegraph cables between Cuba and Spain, and to lay new cables connecting the mainland U.S. with their forces on the ground in Cuba. Despite repeated shelling by Spanish forces, the Signal Corps eventually succeeded with both missions. As fighting on Cuba escalated, the Corps supplied field commanders with the first combat telephones, and used balloons to conduct reconnaissance missions over the Cuban jungles. On April 15, 1899, Ross was honorably discharged from the Corps in Havana, and returned home to Groveport.

Soon afterwards, he moved to Columbus and took a job as a clerk and stenographer for the office of the Adjutant General of the State of Ohio. On April 29, 1903, Ross married Euphemia Duncan 'Effie' Harrington. Effie was the daughter of William Gilbert Harrington and the former Florence Nightingale Moodie. Florence's cousin and adopted sister, Isabella "Belle" Moodie, married William Prescott Frost, Jr. in 1873, and the following year they had their first-born child, who would eventually become the renowned author and poet, Robert Frost. Effie's father owned and operated a successful jewelry store, The Harrington Company, which was located at 84 North High Street in downtown Columbus, and Ross eventually became the manager of the store. Over the next several years, the Shaw's had two sons, including:

Robert Ross Bus' Shaw, Jr. 1904-1985
Howard Barton 'Bart' Shaw 1908 -1969

In 1917, all of the major powers of Europe were embroiled in the First World War, and tensions between the U.S. and Germany were increasing. Although he was in his late thirties and had served his country honorably during the Spanish-American War, the escalating tensions caused Ross to join the Officers Reserve Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve, and on December 17, 1917, he was transferred to the Quartermaster Corps in the Army's Air Service and was promoted to Captain. In May 1918, Ross was sent to France as part of the Army's American Expeditionary Forces (AEF). Serving under Gen. John "Black Jack" Pershing, the AEF supported British and French troops in key battles at Cantigny, Belleau Woods, Hamel and Marne. On September 12, 1918, the AEF engaged German forces at the Battle of Saint Mihiel with over 500,000 men, which, to this day, is still the largest single offensive operation ever undertaken by an American military force. Ross continued his service in the Quartermaster Corps, eventually being promoted to the rank of Major. On March 28, 1919, he received an honorable discharge from the Army and returned to Columbus.

Unfortunately, his time away from home led to a period of estrangement with his wife and, in 1920, Ross and Effie separated. As a result of their subsequent divorce, he was forced to leave his job with The Harrington Company. In 1921, he began working as a salesman for a local rubber company. Soon after, Ross began dating Agatha Mary 'Mary' Sites, the daughter of Joseph Sites and the former Catherine Rose Keelty. Joseph Sites emigrated to the U.S. from Lithuania in 1886, and had Americanized his surname by changing it from "Jasiatis" to "Sites". During her youth, Agatha decided to rearrange her given and middle name and became known as "Mary Agatha". On September 5, 1922, Ross and Mary were married at the Franklin County Courthouse by Municipal Judge E.V. Mahaffey. Over the next several years, they had three sons, including:

Richard Robert Shaw 1923-1943
Thomas Ross Shaw 1925-Living
Sanford Joseph Shaw 1929-2011

Ross' employment as a salesman led to temporary reassignments at several locations around the country, including: Los Angeles, California; Lakeland, Florida; and, Detroit, Michigan. With his mother, Hannah, in declining health, they moved back to Columbus for good in the early 1930s, and Ross took a job as a sales tax examiner for the State of Ohio. On May 1, 1932, his first wife, Effie, died in Columbus as a result of septicemia, and on March 12, 1943, Ross and Mary's eldest son, Richard, was killed during an Army Air Corps training flight in Meridian, Mississippi. During his later working years, Ross became an audit supervisor for the U.S. Department of Selective Service. On October 1, 1956, he passed away at the age of 77 as the result of a heart attack. Ross was buried at Groveport Cemetery on October 3, 1956. Mary continued to live at their home, located at 2395 Dover Road in Columbus, for many years before returning to Lakeland, Florida to live with her surviving sons, Thomas and Sanford. She passed away in Lakeland on January 22, 1987.

^[1]

Sources

1. Birth - 1879 Source Information: Ancestry.com. Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: "Ohio Births and Christenings, 1821-1962." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2009, 2011. Index entries derived from digital copies of original and compiled records. "Ohio Births and Christenings, 1821-1962." Index. Family History Library (FHL) Film #285135.

2. Baptism - 1879 Source Information: Ancestry.com. Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: "Ohio Births and Christenings, 1821-1962." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2009, 2011. Index entries derived from digital copies of original and compiled records. "Ohio Births and Christenings, 1821-1962." Index. Family History Library (FHL) Film #285135.

3. Residence - 1880 Source Citation: Year: 1880; Census Place: Groveport, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: 1015; Family History Film: 1255015; Page: 257D; Enumeration District: 013; Image: 0621. Source Information: Original data: Tenth Census of the United States, 1880. (NARA microfilm publication T9, 1,454 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. Schedule images derived from digital copies of original records.

4. Residence/Military Service - 1898 Source Information: Graden, Debra, comp. Ohio Soldiers in the War with Spain, 1898-99 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000. Original data: Compiled under the direction of Frank B. Willis, Governor, Charles Q. Hildebrant, Secretary of State, and Benson W. Hough, Adjutant General. The Official Roster of Ohio Soldiers in the War with Spain, 1898-99. Ft. Leavenworth, KS, USA: C.A.R.L. Library, 1916.

5. Residence - 1900 Source Citation: Year: 1900; Census Place: Madison, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: 1266; Page: 15A; Enumeration District: 0037; FHL microfilm: 1241266. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623, 1854 rolls.

6. Residence - 1902 Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: R.L. Polk and Co. Columbus City Directory, 1902-1903". Listing for Ross R. Shaw, page 804.

7. Marriage - 1903 Source information: "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XZKB-X4B : accessed 15 Jan 2013), Robert Ross Shaw and Effie D. Harrington, 1903; citing reference V35, CN 7261, FHL microfilm 285159.

8. Residence - 1910 Source Citation: Year: 1910; Census Place: Columbus Ward 3, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: T624_1181; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 0067; FHL microfilm: 1375194. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Original data: Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910 (NARA microfilm publication T624, 1,178 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

9. Residence/Military Service - 1918 Source Information: Ancestry.com. Ohio Soldiers in WWI, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005. Original data: The Official Roster of Ohio Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in the World War, 1917-18. Columbus, OH, USA: The F.J. Heer Printing Co., 1926.

10. Marriage - 1922 Source information: "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XZ2X-4CM : accessed 15 Jan 2013). Robert R. Shaw and Mary A. Sites, 1922; citing reference bk 80 cn 59494, FHL microfilm 1854975.

11. Residence - 1924 Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: R.L. Polk and Co. Columbus City Directory, 1924". Listing for R. Ross Shaw, page 1428.

12. Residence - 1925 Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: R.L. Polk and Co. Columbus City Directory, 1925". Listing for Robert R. Shaw, page 1401.

13. Residence - 1930 Source Citation: Year: 1930; Census Place: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan; Roll: 1063; Page: 53B; Enumeration District: 0795; Image: 710.0; FHL microfilm: 2340798. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1930. T626, 2,667 rolls.

14. Residence - 1940 Source Citation: Year: 1940; Census Place: Columbus, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: T627_3243; Page: 3B; Enumeration District: 93-74. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls.

15. Residence - 1945 Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: R.L. Polk and Co. Columbus City Directory, 1945". Listing for Robert R. Shaw, page 1204.

16. Death/Burial - 1956 Source Citation: National Archives and Records Administration; Washington, D.C.; Applications for Headstones for U.S. military veterans, 1925-1941; National Archives Microfilm Publication: A1, 2110-C; Record Group Title: Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General; Record Group Number: 92. Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1925-1963 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: Applications for Headstones for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1941. Microfilm publication M1916, 134 rolls. ARC ID: 596118. Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, Record Group 92. National Archives at Washington, D.C. Applications for Headstones, compiled 01/01/1925 - 06/30/1970, documenting the period ca. 1776 - 1970 ARC: 596118. Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, 1774–1985, Record Group 92. National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

17. Death/Burial - 1956 Source Information: Ancestry.com. Web: Ohio, Find A Grave Index, 1787-2012 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: Find A Grave. Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi: accessed 25 January 2013.

1. ↑ Biography authored by Thomas Lawrence Shaw, paternal grandson of Roscoe Robert "Ross" Shaw, December 28, 2013.