A Historical Column From The Fayette County Historical Commission
In April 1920, there was no mention in our local newspapers that a native son’s book had just been included in The New York Times’ list of notable new science books. More than a century later, we are finally printing the incredible story of Robert Tecumtha Browne, an African-American mathematician, philosopher and author who was born in Fayette County on July 16, 1882.
Browne usually listed his birthplace as La Grange, but local records suggest that he probably grew up north of town in the Rabbs Prairie vicinity. He was one of at least 12 children of Jim and Bettie (McDow) Brown, who had moved their family from Alabama in the early 1870s. Although neither parent could read or write, Fayette County’s 1893 school census shows all five of their school-age children, including Robert, enrolled. Browne later claimed to have taught 11 years in Texas, which would make him about 16 when he began. There were 16-yearold teachers in Fayette County, but we have not found a record that Browne was one of them.