The Armstrong Families of Linn County, Iowa

JAMES M. ARMSTRONG, M. D., a prominent and skillful physician of Lisbon, is a native of Columbiana County, Ohio, and was born six miles from New Lisbon, Nov. 0, 1812. His father, Andrew Armstrong, was a native of York County, Pa., and his grandfather, John Armstrong, was also a native of the same county and a farmer by occupation. The grandfather of our subject was a pioneer of Columbiana County, Ohio, arriving there in 1805. He purchased a tract of timber land, cleared a farm, established a comfortable home, and remained there until his life terminated. A grandson, John Armstrong, now owns and occupies the old farm.

Andrew Armstrong, the father of our subject, was a young man when he removed with his parents to Ohio. In due time he was married to Miss Rachel King, a native of Franklin County, Pa. lie purchased a farm near his father's homestead, where he remained for several years, then sold out and purchased another tract of land two miles from New Lisbon. After a few years lie also sold this and purchased a hotel at Rochester, in the same county. He was occupied as "mine host" the remainder of his life. The wife and mother passed from earth three days after the demise of her husband. Thejr were the parents of nine children, only four of whom are living; Thomas K. is a resident of Toledo, Iowa; the subject of our sketch is the next in order of birth; William B. lives in Marion; Mrs. Elizabeth Young resides in Mt. Vernon.

The subject of this notice was the second child of his parents' family. He was a bright, active boy, and improved every opportunity for educating himself. His advantages were few; he attended the subscription school during the day, and at night studied at home by the light of the tallow dip. At the age of twenty-two years he was employed as clerk in a general store, at New Lisbon, and still pursued his studies during his leisure hours, making the German language one of his specialties. He was thus occupied for a year, and then engaged in business on his own account.

The marriage of James M. Armstrong and Miss Harriet M. Perrigo was celebrated Oct. 28, 1837. Mrs. Harriet Armstrong was a native of New York State, and died Dec. 6, 1839. After his marriage Dr. Armstrong engaged in farming, and was thus occupied for two years. He had for some time been inclined to enter upon a professional life, and commenced the study of medicine in the office of George Fries, M. D., at Hanover, Columbiana Co., Ohio. He remained there two years and then attended a course of lectures in Philadelphia. He commenced practice at Carrolton, Carroll Co., Ohio, and remained in this county until 1856, when lie decided to go farther West. He crossed the Mississippi, came into Lisbon, then but a growing village, commenced practice here, and has been for the most part actively engaged until L882; at that time he endeavored to withdraw, and now only practices among old friends and acquaintances.

The second marriage of Dr. Armstrong occurred Sept. 14, USl.'i, at which time he was united with Miss Nancy J. Westfall, a native of Carroll County, Ohio, and she departed this life Sept. '

Dr. Armstrong was married a third time, Sept.

As printed in the source¹. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

Ohio and Xew Jersey, respectively. In 1855 her father came to Cedar Rapids, and after spending a short time in Linn county, located near Shellsburg. Benton county. At that time there were but three families living in his township, and he assisted in its organization, being the one to propose its name. At the first election held there only six or seven votes were polled. Being one of the leading men of his community Mr. Fawcett was called upon to fill nearly all of the township offices, and was a prominent and influential member of the Presbyterian church. During his residence in this state he met with excellent success and became the owner of seven hundred and sixty acres of valuable land. Both he and his wife are now deceased. In their family were eleven children, seven of whom are still living. Two sons, William H. and John Albert, were in the Union army during the war of the Rebellion. The former participated in the battles of Shiloh and Pittsburg Landing, the siege of Corinth and Vicksburg, the battles of luka and Jackson, and the Atlanta campaign. On the 226. of July, 1864, he was taken prisoner and sent to Andersonville prison, where he was held for four months, and then taken to Florence, South Carolina, suffering all of the privations of southern prison life. John A. was in the one-hundred-day service and died about the time of expiration of his term of service. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong were John C, an extensive farmer of Benton county; George, deceased; William J., also a farmer of Benton county; Hettie May, wife of Albert Slotterbeck, of the same county; Newton A., a farmer of Benton county; Horace T., deceased; Mary J., wife of Alfonso Ramelsburg, of Benton county; Louis N., a resident of Texas; Minnie, wife of C. W. Meek, attorney of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Fred and Chester A., who are attending college in Cedar Rapids; and one who died in infancy.

Mr. Armstrong continued to actively engage in farming until his death, which occurred on the 12th of July, 1895. By his ballot he always supported the men and measures of the Democracy, and took an active interest in the welfare of his county and state. He was widely and favorably known, and no man in his community was held in higher regard or had more warm friends than Thomas G. Armstrong. His estimable wife still survives him and is also highly respected and esteemed. She continued to reside on the home farm until 1896, when she removed to Cedar Rapids and purchased her present handsome residence at No. 603 Third avenue west, which is supplied with every modern convenience and is a most attractive home. While in Benton county she was a member of the Presbyterian church, of which her husband was a liberal supporter. Since coming to Cedar Rapids she has been a member of the Christian church, the church of her choice, but which was not convenient for her to attend in Benton county.

As printed in the source³. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

SAMUEL G. ARMSTRONG.

The subject of this review, who is the senior member of the firm of Armstrong & IcClenahan, ha.- through his own exertions attained an honorable position and marked prestige among the representative business men of Cedar Rapids, and with signal consistency it may be said that he is the architect of his own fortunes and one whose success amply justifies the application of the somewhat hackneyed but most expressive title, "a self-mail man."

Mr. Armstrong was born near the present village of Clarence, Cedar county, Iowa, August 24, 1858, and is one of a family of seven children, all living at the present writing in 1901. His father, Charles Cornelius Armstrong, was born in Connecticut, and when young went to Ohio, where he married Miss Lucy Dawson, a native of Virginia. About 1845 they came to Iowa and were among the early settlers of Cedar county. The father first located on a farm near what is now Clarence in Cedar county, where he lived till 1866, when he moved to 3.1t. Wernon, where he lived one year, and then to a farm near Alarion, afterward living at Alarion and Mt. Vernon again. The father died in 1885, and the mother passed away in 1893.

The primary education of our subject was received in the public schools of Marion, and later he attended Cornell College at Mt. Wernon for a few terms. At the age of seventeen he commenced teaching school and followed that profession quite successfully from 1876 to 1879, attending school in the meantime. He began his mercantile career as a clerk in a country store at Bertram, Iowa, where he was employed for one year, and in the fall of 1880 came to Cedar Rapids, and commenced work for the dry-goods firm of Foote & Whitney, remaining with them about two months, but not liking the business, he entered the employ of I. N. Isham, a picjueer merchant of Cedar Rapids, then conducting a clothing business, being with him and his successors until the fall of 1890.

On the 3d of September, that year,.Mr. Armstrong embarked in business for himself as a member of the firm of Anntrong, Fletcher & Company, opening a clothing store in a room 40x70 feet, the site being a part of their present location. Two years later the firm was changed to.Vrmstrong, McClenahan & Company, the company being H.. I'alley, of St. Paul, Minnesota, whose interest Mr. Armstrong purchased in 1897, when the firm name was changed to Armstrong & McClenahan, as it now stands. They carry a fine line of clothing and gents' furnishing goods and have met with remarkable success from the start. Their rapidly increasing trade has compelled them to enlarge their stock from time to time, and to make many improvements in their store. At first they occupied only one door, but now use all of the three stories with a basement at numbers 120- 122- 124 South Second street, having sixteen thousand square feet of floor space. They have on an average of fifteen in their employ, and their extensive trade is not only in the city and county, but extends throughout this section of the state. The following is an extract from the Evening Gazette:

"Largest in Iowa — Armstrong & ISIc- Clenahan's Remodeled Clothing Store — Now equipped with an electric passenger elevator and every modern convenience — Children's Department on Second Floor. The people of Cedar Rapids ought to take civic pride in the remodeled clothing store of Messrs. Armstrong & AlcClenahan, for that popular institution is now the very largest of its kind in the entire state of Iowa. The immense stock covers four floors, including the basement, with sixteen thousand eight hundred square feet of floor space, giving the store front rank among all the great mercantile establishment of Iowa."

Mr. Armstrong was in his 'teens when his mother was left a widow and he was called upon to contribute to the support of the family. For nine years he was employed as a clerk, during which time, by economy and judicious investments, he managed to save a nucleus, with which to embark in business for himself. A man of good business ability, sound judgment and keen discrimination, he has met with well deserved success in his undertakings, and is now interested in a number of different enterprises. He is connected with the store of the Armstrong Clothing Company at Lincoln, Nebraska; is a stockholder in the Clark MacDaniels Company, manufacturers of overalls and shirts, and the Cedar Rapids National Bank; and a stockholder and director of the Cedar Rapids Loan & Trust Company, the latter of which he helped to organize. On the 5th of September, 1896, Mr. Armstrong married Miss Anna Cooper, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. S. Cooper, old residents of Cedar Rapids, who were born in Ireland and are now well advanced in life. Our subject and his wife have one child, Robert Cooper, born July 4, 1897. They have a pleasant home at 1015 Fourth avenue, and are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. In his political affiliations Mr. Armstrong is a Republican, and he is deeply interested in public affairs and the good of the community in which he lives. He is genial, courteous, enterprising and progressive, of commendable public-spirit and the highest integrity, and well deserves the success that has come to him.

As printed in the source³. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.