Dr. Mollie W. Armstrong

The Handbook of Texas says that when Mollie Armstrong began practicing in Brownwood in 1899 she was not only the first woman optometrist in Texas but only the second in the United States. She worked for passage of the state's first optometry law and sat on the board of examiners for twenty-four years, serving as its vice president and president. She first edited the Texas Optometrist, and largely through her efforts the first optometric professional liability policy became available nationwide. In 1927 she helped organize the Texas Woman's Auxiliary to the American Optometric Association. She retired in 1962.

What the plaque says

Dr. Mollie W. Armstrong (January 23, 1875-May 23, 1964). Mary Elizabeth (Mollie) Wright Armstrong was instrumental in establishing optometry as a profession in Texas during the first half of the 20th century. A native of Bell County, she briefly attended Baylor Female College in Belton, where she met her future husband, Walter David (W.D.) Armstrong. They married in 1892 and moved to Brownwood. W.D., a watchmaker, opened a store in partnership with his brother and, as was the business custom at the time, the store inventory included eyeglasses. Mollie's interest in optometry began when a traveling optical salesman fitted her with glasses, curing her chronic headaches. Studying on her own, she completed a Kellum and Moore School of Optometry correspondence course. She excelled in her studies and finished her degree in Refraction at the Atlanta, Ga. Campus in 1899. She returned to Brownwood and opened an optical department in the family store, becoming the first woman optometrist in Texas. She earned her Doctorate of Optics from Northern Illinois School of Optometry in 1905. A leader in her profession, Dr. Armstrong was a charter member of the Texas Optometric Association, which she served as the first woman president in 1923. Gov. Miriam A. Ferguson, a Bell County childhood friend, appointed her to the Texas State Board of Examiners in Optometry. Dr. Armstrong later worked on national issues as a board member of the American Optometric Association. She was also a Brownwood civic leader, supporting libraries and parks, serving on the Chamber of Commerce, and founding the local Business and Professional Women's Association. (2006)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Lake Brownwood State Park — 10 mi
  A CCC park on a reservoir that filled in a single flood before its dam was done, with stone cabins, a hilltop dance pavilion and a grand staircase climbed by dancers arriving by boat.

More markers nearby

• Daniel Baker College — steps away
• Brooke Smith — 0.4 mi
• The Rev. Noah Turner Byars — 0.5 mi
• Camp Collier, C.S.A. — 0.8 mi