Robert O. Lawton (1924–1980) was a professor and academic administrator at

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

(FSU) who received the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

for his service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Life and career

Lawton was born in

Greenwood, South Carolina Greenwood is a city in and the county seat of Greenwood County, South Carolina, United States. The population in the 2020 United States Census was 22,545 down from 23,222 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Lander University. Geography and C ...

on December 28, 1924. He attended

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...

until joining the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

. He became a

Sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

in the

Infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

, serving in the Timberwolf Division, and was injured in combat in Germany. He was awarded the

for his "singular action, outstanding courage and extreme devotion to duty." He was later injured in combat in Germany. He married Elise Nicholson (of Greenwood), and they raised a son (Robert O. Lawton III) and a daughter (Elise Lawton) together. After the war he studied at Duke University, where he earned the A.B.(1946), M.A. (1947), and Ph.D. (1949) degrees in English. Lawton came to FSU as an instructor in 1949, and in 1952 he relocated to

Eglin Air Force Base Eglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base in the western Florida Panhandle, located about southwest of Valparaiso in Okaloosa County. The host unit at Eglin is the 96th Test Wing (formerly the 96th Air Base Wing). The ...

and became the director of FSU's Armed Forces College there as part of its new "Bootstrap" program. In 1954 he took on a similar role at

Ramey Air Force Base Ramey Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. It was named after United States Army Air Forces Brigadier General Howard Knox Ramey. Following its closure, it was redeveloped into Rafael Hernandez Airpo ...

in Puerto Rico, and eventually returned to FSU's Tallahassee campus as director of the entire Bootstrap program in 1956. At FSU he served in various administrative roles, particularly as the associate dean (1962) and dean (1962-1966) of its College of Arts and Sciences. After returning to the faculty in 1972, he wrote a book on

Francis Beaumont Francis Beaumont ( ; 1584 – 6 March 1616) was a dramatist in the English Renaissance theatre, most famous for his collaborations with John Fletcher. Beaumont's life Beaumont was the son of Sir Francis Beaumont of Grace Dieu, near Thrin ...

and his works. He then was appointed provost of the university (1977-1980) under Bernard Sliger.

Honors

After his death in an automobile accident on October 8, 1980 the university honored him by naming the University Distinguished Professor award after him, which is the highest honor awarded by the school in recognition of teaching, scholarship and service to the university. All previous recipients of the honor were retroactively re-named at that time.Robert O. Lawton
Florida State University He received an honorary degree of

L.H.D. The degree of Doctor of Humane Letters (; DHumLitt; DHL; or LHD) is an honorary degree awarded to those who have distinguished themselves through humanitarian and philanthropic contributions to society. The criteria for awarding the degree differ ...

from

in 1968–69.Honorary degree recipients

. Accessed December 6, 2014

References

External links

Robert O. Lawton award citation
for the

, at MilitaryTimes
Memories of Bob Lawton and the History of the Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor Award at FSU
by Jim Smith, Emeritus Professor of Neuroscience at Florida State University 1924 births 1980 deaths Florida State University faculty People from Greenwood, South Carolina Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Wofford College alumni Duke University alumni {{US-army-World-War-II-bio-stub