Howard, Campbell (1906-1984)

Campbell Howard (1906–1984) was an educator, academic, and pioneering collector of Australian theatre history. Born in Ballarat and educated at Sydney Teachers’ College, New England University College, and the University of Melbourne.

Howard joined the foundation staff of the Armidale Teachers' College as a senior music lecturer in 1928 and taught there for twenty years. From 1948 - 1955 he was district inspector of schools at Tamworth. In 1956 he joined the University of New England, first as a senior lecturer and before joining the Department of Adult Education. He retired as Director in 1972. In 1973 Howard was awarded a British Empire Medal for his contribution to education.

While preparing an adult education course on Australian drama in 1957, Howard identified the scarcity of published early- to mid-twentieth-century Australian plays. In response, he began actively seeking unpublished or little-known works written between 1920 and 1955, approaching playwrights and their families to source manuscripts. His efforts resulted in the Campbell Howard Collection of Australian Plays in Manuscript, a nationally significant resource that preserves and illuminates an important period in Australia’s theatrical history.

View the Campbell Howard Collection here.