Ruth Branning Molloy, a poet, writer, photographer, and Philadelphia historian, was born on July 24, 1910 in the Bronx, New York. At the age of fourteen, she graduated from West Philadelphia High School for Girls. Mrs. Molloy estimated that she lived at more than 30 different addresses in West Philadelphia, most of them during her youth.
In 1926, Ruth Branning enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania, where she participated in many clubs and activities, including Sphinx and Key, Bowling Green, and the Freshman Commission. She was also the editor of the 1930 Record Book, and a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.
After earning a B.S. in education from Penn, Ruth Branning went to work for The Philadelphia Inquirer. As an editorial assistant in the library, she researched material for "Everybody's Column" and "100 Years Ago," and helped build the department's reference file. In 1932, she married Joseph E. Molloy, librarian at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Most of their married life was spent in West Philadelphia, where they raised their three daughters. They lived for a time at 3822 Locust Street until the University purchased their house and the other houses on their block during a campus expansion. From Locust Street, the Molloys moved to St. Mark's Square where Mrs. Molloy lived until her death in 2002.
From the description of Collection, 1852-2002. (University of Pennsylvania). WorldCat record id: 648249897
