In 1936, Irving Harold Rauw started his higher education at the University of Idaho to study forestry. During his university years, he was an active student on the Moscow campus. He was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, was on the Vandal swim team, and was a member of the Associated Foresters group.

From 1937 to 1938 he served as president of the university’s Hell Divers Club, which was a club composed of those who passed the senior life-saving tests of the American Red Cross. Finally in 1940, he graduated from U of I with a Bachelors of Science in Agriculture.

Like many men and women of the time, Irving joined the United States Army in World War Two. Serving as an Army pilot, he was sent to Greenland, England, North Africa, and Italy. The airplane Irving flew was the Oregon B-26 Marauder, and was named the Repulsive Wabbit. His military career included participation in bombing raids over Lampedusa, Pantelleria, Sicily, Sardinia, and Rome. After the war, Irving became a coordinator for combat returnees.

Ed Rauw, Irving’s son, donated many of Irving’s University of Idaho mementos including two lettermen sweaters. If you would like to view these items, make an appointment with the Special Collections and Archives department.

Sources

Irving Harold Rauw collection, UG 81, Special Collections and Archives, University of Idaho Library, Moscow, Idaho.

War Records Committee military personnel files, UG 26, Special Collections and Archives, University of Idaho Library, Moscow, Idaho.