Robert Anson

Captain Robert Anson Jr. USN (Ret) left his homeport on the outgoing tide for the last time on August 19th, 2026, bound for another great voyage. Raised in Newport's 5th Ward, Bob is the son of the late Robert and Sarah (Sadie) Anson, who both served in Newport's mansions and estates.

Educated at Rogers High School (1957) and the University of Rhode Island (1961), Bob also held master's degrees and advanced qualifications from Naval Postgraduate School, Providence College, Foreign Services Institute, Naval War College and the NATO Defense College in Rome. His career in the US Navy included tours in Vietnam, where he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal of Valor. Several tours in Newport included command of the USS Capodanno FF-1093 and Director of the Naval Staff College. His favorite tour was as Naval Attaché to the US Embassy in Bonn, Germany, which he left with a nice BMW, no remaining leave and a lifetime of travel memories. Bob later enjoyed hunting for rugs in the bazaars of Jubail, Saudi Arabia.

Bob's other passions in life were cars, his cats, landscape design and vanilla ice cream, as well as many years of beekeeping. He was popular with delivery drivers bringing packages while he restored a number of MG sports cars over the years. His garden reflects his skill and knowledge and is worthy of arboretum status. He was proud to be a founding member of the RI Master Gardener Foundation and enjoyed designing landscape vignettes at Redwood Nurseries for clients around southern New England. Bob faced his recent health challenges with fortitude and humor.

Bob is survived by Anne, his loving wife of 61 years, and his daughters Christine Anson-Morgan (Wiesbaden, Germany) and Geremie Callaghan (Jeff Callaghan, Newport, RI).

We thank the Veteran's Administration, Visiting Nurses of RI, Home Instead and Hope Hospice Care. We are so grateful for the compassion shown by all who assisted us during this time. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers or donations, please plant a tree in Bob's memory - he would love that!