 By the early forties his books fell out of favor due to campaigns run by organizations like the Advertising Federation of America and the American Legion, due to Rugg's junior-high textbooks including concepts considered "pro-socialist" by conservative opponents.Rugg was born on January 17, 1886 in Fitchburg, Massachusetts.Rugg went to school at Dartmouth College, where he received his bachelor of science in civil engineering in 1908 and his graduate degree in civil engineering in 1909.