Farwell Tilden Brown was born December 17, 1910 to Harry Brown and Mary Tilden Brown and has spent his long life in Ames, Iowa (with the exception of one academic year spent at Oberlin College in Ohio). After graduating from Ames High School in 1929, Brown graduated from Iowa State College (University) with a B.S. (1934) in Agricultural Economics and went to work at his father's insurance company until his father died. In 1961, he began a career as a real estate appraiser with the highway commission (now the Iowa Department of Transportation), which lasted until his retirement January 1, 1976. Brown married Ruth Mosher in 1940 and the couple raised two sons and two daughters.

In 1986 the mayor of Ames decreed Brown the official city historian. He is the author of several historical books, including Ames: A ride through town on the "Dinkey", Ames, the early years in word and picture: from Marsh to modern city; Ames in word and picture: further tales and personal memories (book two); A Brown family record; and the Tilden family letters. In addition, he collected thousands of pictures of the Ames area, which the Ames Public Library has made available digitally through the Farwell T. Brown Photographic Archive (http://www.amespubliclibrary.org/researchcollections/farwelltbrownarchive.asp).

Brown passed away on September 1, 2010.

This collection (1873-2010, n.d.)contains news clippings about Farwell Brown and his various enterprises, including the Farwell T. Brown Photographic Archive, a selection of columns and articles written by Brown about Ames history, five calendars created by Brown with historic images of Ames, and an oral history interview Brown conducted in 1968 with Minnesota lumberjack Frank Brean. The collection also contains a small selection of programs, cards and invitations related to Ames and Iowa State College (University).

See also: The Tilden/Brown Family Papers (MS-247)