Dr. Paul Barrus Collection

Dr. Paul Barrus was born on June 29, 1902, in Winterset, Iowa. Dr. Barrus began his teaching career in the rural schools of Iowa at the age of 17. He received his B.A. in English and his M.A. in Latin from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and his Ph.D. from State University of Iowa in Iowa City. He came to East Texas State Teachers College in 1949 as associate professor of English and was named head of the department in November 1952, a position he held until 1969. He formally retired from the university in 1972, but was retained on staff as a professor emeritus. He was forced to fully retire when he turned 70, the University's mandatory retirement age.

Throughout his teaching career he also worked as an ordained minister in the Catholic Church, performing marriages and baptisms and giving sermons. At the age of 76, he was ordained to the priesthood and named assistant pastor of Saint Joseph's Catholic Church in Commerce, Texas. He went on to serve as associate pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Grand Prairie, Texas. Dr. Barrus died on January 1, 2000.