Robert Digges Wimberly Connor (September 26, 1878 – February 25, 1950) was an American historian who served as the first state archivist of North Carolina from 1907 to 1921, and later as the first

Archivist of the United States The Archivist of the United States is the head and chief administrator of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) of the United States. The Archivist is responsible for the supervision and direction of the National Archives. The ...

from 1934 to 1941.

Life and career

Connor was born to Henry G. Connor and Kate Whitfield Connor on September 26, 1878, in

Wilson, North Carolina Wilson is a city in and the county seat of Wilson County, North Carolina, United States. Located approximately east of the capital city of Raleigh, it is served by the interchange of Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 264. Wilson had an estimated p ...

. He graduated from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

in 1899. He married Sadie Hanes of

Mocksville, North Carolina Mocksville is a town in Davie County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 5,051 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Davie County. History Mocksville was incorporated as a town in 1839. The town was named for the original ow ...

on December 23, 1902. In his role as the inaugural secretary of the North Carolina Historical Commission, Connor lobbied the

North Carolina General Assembly The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, State government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...

for a building and funding for what became the State Archives of North Carolina. He served as the first state archivist of North Carolina from 1907 to 1921. Connor left the North Carolina Historical Commission to become the Kenan Professor of History and Government at the

. He held that position until 1934, when President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

appointed him to head the National Archives. Connor served as the third president of the

Society of American Archivists The Society of American Archivists is the oldest and largest archivist association in North America, serving the educational and informational needs of more than 5,000 individual archivist and institutional members. Established in 1936, the organi ...

between 1941 and 1943. He died on February 25, 1950.

References

External links

Connor in the Dictionary of North Carolina BiographyNorth Carolina Historical Marker
1878 births 1950 deaths American archivists American historians National Archives and Records Administration University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni People from Wilson, North Carolina Presidents of the Society of American Archivists Franklin D. Roosevelt administration personnel {{US-historian-stub