Archival Resources

Armes, Edmund Campion And Family Papers, 1913-1943

Biography:

Born in Washington, D.C., in 1888, Edmund Campion Armes was the son of Colonel George Augustus Armes of the United States Army and Lucy Hamilton Kerr Armes of Fairfax County, Virginia. He was a grandson of John Bozman Kerr of Maryland, and great-grandson of John Leeds Kerr of Maryland, a U.S. Senator. In 1902, Col. Armes and his family moved to 1410 St. Charles Street in Birmingham. Edmund Armes graduated from the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, in 1913. He served in the Alabama National Guard from 1923 to 1941. During WWII he served as a major in the United States Air Corps. Armes was as an agent for The Travelers Insurance Company of Hartford, Connecticut, working through the Jemison-Siebels Insurance Agency of Birmingham. He eventually became a vice-president in the Jemison-Seibels Insurance Company. Armes and his wife, Anne Forman of Kentucky (married 1916), and their three daughters lived in the Highland Plaza Apartments. Edmund's sister Ethel Armes wrote The Story of Coal and Iron in Alabama (1910). Another sister, Edith Armes Knox, was a singer and film actress. Edmund Armes died in 1958.

Scope and Content:

The collection includes family correspondence, poetry (including poetry relating to World War II) and public addresses written by Edmund Armes, newspaper clippings, and the diary of an unidentified young woman (probably one of Edmund's sisters) describing school and travels. Also included are bills from Birmingham businesses during the years 1915-1918. Some of the material is undated.

Guide to Collection:

File level guide available in the Archives Department.

Subject Areas:

Armes Family.
Armes, Edmund Campion, 1888- 1958.
Poets -- Alabama -- Birmingham.


Collection Number: 1199

Size: 1 linear foot (2 boxes)

Restrictions: Standard preservation and copyright restrictions.