Penn Biographies

Lawrance Abercromby Brown (1898 - 1993)

• Wharton School Class of 1922
• Spade Man
• Captain of the Penn track team, intercollegiate champion and world record holder
• Member of Delta Phi fraternity
• Member of Sphinx, Merzbacher Club, and Rocky Mountain Club
• Penn relays official

Member of the U.S. team at the 1924 Paris Olympics

Investment banker

Lawrance Abercromby Brown was born in Seattle, Washington, on September 29th, 1898. After graduating from high school there, he matriculated at the University of Pennsylvania in 1918.

While at Penn, Brown was an active member of the Delta Phi fraternity, Merzbacher Club, and Rocky Mountain Club, and the Sphinx Society. It was on the track, however, that he would truly make a name for himself. As captain of the 1922 varsity track team he was a member of the relay teams that established world records in several relay events including the mile and two mile relays. As an individual, he was an intercollegiate champion in the half mile and world record holder in the thousand yard run. Brown was a member of the 1924 U.S. Olympic team, running in the 1600 meter relay. Even though he failed to earn any medals, he continued his career in track for many more decades as an official at the Penn relays until 1964.

After graduating from Penn with a degree in economics, Brown worked as an investment banker for nearly sixty years, retiring from Bruns, Nordeman & Ray Inc. in 1988. Always well-liked and respected, Brown was awarded the University's Alumni Award of Merit in 1972. He died in Philadelphia on October 4th, 1993.

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