Augustus F. Wagner

BOURNE — Augustus F. Wagner of Buzzards Bay peacefully died on Nov. 15, 2007, while in the loving care of the JML Care Center in Falmouth.

Son of the late Captain Augustus F. Wagner and Margaret B. Wagner, he was raised in Bourne, with a lifetime commitment to public service, as well as significant initiatives in the private sector.

He was predeceased by his wife, Elizabeth E. "Betty" Wagner; daughter-in-law, Jeannette T. Wagner; and son-in-law, Robert N. Lemieux.

Survivors include his son, Augustus F. Wagner Jr., his wife, Deborah, and his daughter, Ann E. Wagner-Lemieux; grandchildren Augustus F. Wagner III and his wife, Julie, Linda A. Wagner, Jonathan C. Wagner and his wife, Karen, and Lisa A. Elichalt and her husband, Etienne; great-grandchildren Emma R. Wagner, Jacob A. Wagner, Mallory B. Elichalt and Sam E. Elichalt, and many other family relations and friends.

An accomplished hydroplane driver, he won numerous races of note, including the William Randolph Hearst Trophy for the Around Manhattan Island Race, and the Carl Mayer Trophy for the Delaware River Race. Throughout the mid-20th century, he was provided opportunities to drive some of the fastest hydroplanes of that era.

Locally, he is fondly remembered for a last-second, full-court basketball shot that defeated archrival Wareham by a single point, which he humbly referred to as "pure dumb luck."

Among many other sports-related activities, he was a noted marksman with firearms, particularly handguns, and competed throughout Massachusetts in tournaments involving various police agencies.

In the public sector, he served as a Bourne selectman and assessor for more than 18 years; water commissioner for 14 years; and many other public service committees, including a federal committee to select the physical location for the U.S. Air Force Academy. He played an instrumental role in the location of Massachusetts Maritime Academy at Taylor's Point, Buzzards Bay, which involved significant local undertakings and extensive activities in the Boston political arena. He successfully opposed the power industry efforts to locate a power plant in Bourne along the shoreline of the Cape Cod Canal, which ultimately was located in Sandwich at the easterly end of the canal. He foresaw that the industry promises of substantial tax benefits would not be forthcoming and the beauty of the canal would be lost forever. As an assessor, he developed formulas for the fair and equitable assessment of property interests that were adopted by many municipalities during the 1950s era.

Prior to World War II, he was employed by the Army Corps of Engineers, both in Boston and at the Cape Cod Canal, after which he became a motorcycle police officer until the outbreak of the war. He ultimately returned to police work during the 1970s and subsequently retired from the Bourne Police Department.

During World War II he served in the Navy aboard the USS Fall River, a heavy cruiser with assignments in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters.

In the private sector, he was a licensed real estate broker and the founder of a number of business interests, with his favorite undertaking being the establishment of Betty-Ann's, a retail/wholesale ice cream business, which has remained in continuous operation for more than 50 years.

He was a Mason for virtually his entire adult life, with membership at the De Witt Clinton Lodge, enjoying the collegiality and commitment to assisting others in need.

For a number of years, he was the scoutmaster for Troop 49 of Buzzards Bay, more concerned with developing personal values than tying square knots.

Friends and family will be received on Monday, Nov. 19, 2007, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Nickerson Bourne Funeral Home, 40 MacArthur Blvd., Bourne. A memorial funeral service will be conducted in the Bourne United Methodist Church, 37 Sandwich Road, Bourne, on Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2007, at 10 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to JML Care Center, 184 Ter Heun Drive, Falmouth, MA 02540, or Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation, P.O. Box 370, Hyannis, MA 02601.