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Robert W. Baskin Papers

Dates

1826 – 2000

Creator

Baskin, Robert W.

Summary/Abstract

Robert W. Baskin, Sr. donated his papers to the Albert Gore Research Center at Middle Tennessee State University in 1998. Included in the papers are his family’s genealogical records as well as Rutherford County history chronicles pertaining primarily to schools, communities and churches with ties to Baskin’s ancestors. There is also limited information regarding local golf courses and the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Quantity/Physical Description

Approximately 3.5 linear feet

Language(s)

English

Repository

Albert Gore Research Center, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN 37132, (615) 898-2632

Restrictions on Access

None

Copyright

It is presumed that corporate and individual copyrights in manuscripts, photographs, and other materials have been retained by the copyright owners. Copyright restrictions apply. Users of materials should seek necessary permissions from the copyright hold

Preferred Citation

(Box Number, Folder Number), Collection Name, Albert Gore Research Center, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Acquisition

Donated by Robert W. Baskin, 1998

Processed By

Nancy Morgan, graduate assistant, 2000

Arrangement

These papers are arranged by series and subseries. The subseries are arranged by family name, alphabetically or by type, according to the creator’s original order.

Biographical Note

Robert W. Baskin, a fourth generation Baskin in Rutherford County, Tennessee, was born December 14, 1910, to Thomas Myles Baskin and Mary Ada Woodruff Baskin. He attended public schools in Rutherford and Giles Counties, graduating in 1941 from Middle Tennessee State Teacher’s College (now Middle Tennessee State University) and subsequently earning a master’s degree from Peabody College in Nashville. He played football in secondary school and in college.

In 1933 and 1934, Baskin was a member of the Civilian Conservation Corps working on forestry projects in the Unaka Mountain area near Unicoi, Tennessee. In 1942, he was drafted into the Army and served in the 43rd Infantry, 118th Medical Battalion in the South Pacific during World War II. Later that year, he married Lucille King, with whom he had three children.

He was department chief of the Veterans’ Administration Hospital’s Rehabilitation Division in Murfreesboro for seventeen years, retiring in 1974. He supervised the development of the VA golf course during his tenure. His interest in golf led him to participate in one renovation of the Murfreesboro Golf Club. During the 1970s, he served as Rutherford County Historian. Over the years, he collected and compiled information on school, church, and family history, focusing primarily on the Blackman, Barfield, and Windrow communities in Rutherford County.

Lucille King Baskin died in 1993. The following year Mr. Baskin married Lorraine Ikard Wells. Mr. Baskin died January 11, 2000, and is buried in Murfreesboro’s Evergreen Cemetery.

Scope and Content

The Robert W. Baskin Papers consist primarily of genealogy and Rutherford County, Tennessee community history compilations. In addition to wills, deeds, military records, photographs, and census records, items range from original slave receipts to plantation ledgers to family correspondence. Some materials are original, but the majority is photocopied. Mr. Baskin's work in East Tennessee as a member of the Civilian Conservation Corps during 1933-34 and his interest in golf are represented in a small portion of the collection. Photographs, although physically stored separately from the rest of the papers, are referenced in the appropriate series. Although the physical dates of original papers are 1826-2000, many of the photocopied, transcribed, and abstracted materials are much older. Information for the family histories dates as far back as 1439.

Although Mr. Baskin did much of the research and compilation, some information was provided or compiled by others. Notes from authors other than Mr. Baskin are included in “Correspondence” folders for the pertinent family grouping. The papers are arranged into four series – Genealogy, Community, Civilian Conservation Corps, and Golf.

Associated Materials

None

Related Collections

None

Subject Terms

Persons/Families

Robert W. Baskin Lucille King Baskin Loretta Young Thomas Rideout Ann Rideout Barrow Family Beesley Family Blackman Family Bosley Family Bowman Family Buchanan Family Carter Family Childress Family Cockrill Family Dooley Family Dunn Family Dyer Family Ear