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Andrew Joseph Armstrong (1873-1954), a native of Kentucky, was a noted scholar of the life and works of English poet Robert Browning. He held teaching positions at several colleges and universities in the early 20th century and met his future wife, Mary Maxwell (1882-1971), in 1904, when both taught English at East Texas Baptist Institute in Rusk. In 1909, Dr. Armstrong traveled to Italy, where he met Robert W. Barrett "Pen" Browning, only son of Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Dr. Armstrong and Mary Maxwell married in 1911, and in 1912, they moved to Waco when he became chair of the Baylor English Department. Pen Browning died that year without leaving a will, and in 1913, Sotheby's in London auctioned his estate, including papers and belongings of his famous parents. Dr. Armstrong arranged for an agent to attend the auction and document the disposition of each item. Aided by his wife, he embarked on a decades-long quest to acquire those and other Browning items. Dr. Armstrong donated his Browning collection to Baylor University in 1918. The Armstrongs then employed varied fundraising efforts to continue building the collection, including leading educational tours and arranging for world-class scholars, writers and entertainers to visit the Baylor campus. Plans for a separate building for the growing collection began in the 1930s, but World War II intervened. Construction began in 1948 after the Armstrongs raised over a million dollars, and the Armstrong Browning Library formally opened in 1951. Dr. Armstrong served as director until his death in 1954, and Mary Armstrong was director from 1954 to 1959. They are buried in Waco's historic Oakwood Cemetery. (2006) |
