Former Land Commissioner, Asst. Secretary of Dept. of Interior, Bob Armstrong Dies at 82

[TexasTowelie]

Three former Texas land commissioners — (l-r) Jerry Patterson, Bob Armstrong and Garry Mauro — at the swearing-in ceremony of Land Commissioner George P. Bush on Jan. 2, 2015. Armstrong, 82, died March 1, 2015.

Former Texas Land Commissioner Bob Armstrong died Sunday night at age 82.

Robert Landis Armstrong served as a Democratic state representative from Austin in the 1960s. He was land commissioner from 1970 to 1982, and later joined the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission. Armstrong ran for governor in 1982 but lost the Democratic nomination to eventual winner Mark White.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed Armstrong assistant secretary for land and minerals management at the U.S. Department of the Interior. Armstrong returned to Austin in 1998 and remained active in the environmental community, advocating for more funding for Texas Parks and Wildlife and serving as a board member for the nonprofit environmental law firm Trustees for Alaska.

Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement that Armstrong leaves behind a “a legacy of leadership, courage, and compassion.”

Read more: http://www.texastribune.org/2015/03/02/former-land-commissioner-bob-armstrong-dies-82/