October 21. On this date in 2004, R. Jackson Armstrong-Ingram, a Bahá’í author, archivist, and composer, died in Henderson, Nevada.

 

October 21. On this date in 2004, R. Jackson Armstrong-Ingram, a Bahá’í author, archivist, and composer, died in Henderson, Nevada.

The following obituary was published in the "South Bend Tribune"...

Obituary: R. Jackson Armstrong-Ingram:

April 30, 1954 - Oct. 21, 2004

Oct. 21, 2004, R. Jackson Armstrong-Ingram died in Henderson, Nevada.

He was born on April 30, 1954, to Richard and Margaret "Min" Armstrong-Ingram in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He left school and educated himself to the degree that he was able to get a B.A. from Goshen College in one year, graduating in 1978. He married Karen L. Eggermont of South Bend, Indiana, on September 26, 1976.

His first son, Conan, was born on September 1, 1977, in Goshen, Indiana. After a move to Belfast, Northern Ireland. Tiernan was born on December 13, 1978. In 1982 the family moved to Evanston, Illinois, and Jackson worked at the Bahá'í House of Worship Archives in Wilmette. After a move to South Bend, Indiana, he spent some time working for a telephone survey company. In 1991, he set up the St. Joseph County Archives in South Bend, supervising two moves in almost as many years. Jackson worked with a variety of record holders in the area, including St. Mary's College and the St. Joseph County Public Library Genealogy Room. During this time, he received his Archive Certification from the Illinois Historical Society, Chicago. In addition, Jackson taught evening Cultural Anthropology courses as an adjunct at Indiana University South Bend from 1993-1997.

In 1997, Jackson moved to Carson City, Nevada, to continue archival work at the State Archives, becoming the state's first Electronic Records Archivist from July to October of 1999. After working as Archivist and Records Administrator for the city of Henderson, Nevada, from 1999 to the end of 2001, he became State Archivist for the state of Alaska in 2002. Health problems forced a return to Henderson where he continued to free-lace as an editor, consultant, and author for Kalimat Press, as well as a lecturer and consultant to other organizations. He wrote two books on Bahá'í subjects for Kalimat Press: Written in Light: Abdu'L-Baha and the American Bahá'í Community, 1998-1921 (1998) and Studies in Babi and Bahá'í History: Music, Devotions, and Mashriq'L-Adkhar (1988). In 2002, he published a book on Henderson, Nevada, entitled Images of America: Henderson. His work on electronic archives includes Digital Imaging Guidelines for Nevada Libraries and Archives (2003). His writing is considered of importance by many in the archive field who hold him in high regard from Alaska to Amsterdam. Jackson's papers will be housed in three separate archives: the archival work at the National Archives, Washington, D.C.; his writing on Middle Eastern Studies at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies in Ann Arbor, Michigan; and the remainder at Kalimat Press in Los Angeles, California.

He is survived by his two sons; two grandsons, Owen and Albert; and his ex-wife, all of South Bend, Indiana. He is also survived in Northern Ireland by his mother, sister, Rosemary Hunter; two nephews, Richard and David Hunter; a niece, Nicola Ingram; and a brother, Trevor, presently in England.

Jackson was a highly intelligent and creative individual who loved knowledge for its own sake. In his teens, he performed puppet shows for school children, limiting himself to puppets without strings using muppet-like creatures, as well as Chinese and Balinese puppets. After his marriage, he composed a melody to his wife, and, in 1983, a composition of his was performed at the Bahá'í House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois. Reading and writing were his favorite past-times. He enjoyed good conversation, good music, and loved nothing better than to expound on what he learned to a rapt audience. He will be remembered by those who knew and loved him, for his tender heart, his love of learning, and his laughter. May he rest in gentle peace with God.