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William Armstrong (Virginia politician)

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Honorable
William Armstrong
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 16th district
In office
March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1833
Preceded byJames Stephenson
Succeeded byJames M. H. Beale
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates
from Hampshire County
In office
1818–1820
Serving with Francis White
Preceded byEdward McCarty
William Naylor
Succeeded byEdward McCarty
Francis White
Personal details
Born(1782-12-23)December 23, 1782
Lisburn, County Antrim, Kingdom of Ireland
DiedMay 10, 1865(1865-05-10) (aged 82)
Keyser, West Virginia, U.S.[a]
Resting placeIndian Mound Cemetery, Romney, West Virginia, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic-Republican
National Republican
Whig
Spouse(s)Elizabeth Ann McCarty
Jane Baxter Armstrong
ChildrenEliza Jane Armstrong Gibson
William James Armstrong
Edward McCarty Armstrong
James Dillon Armstrong
Profession
  • Lawyer
  • civil servant
  • politician
  • businessperson

William Armstrong (December 23, 1782 – May 10, 1865) was an American lawyer, civil servant, politician, and businessperson. He represented Hampshire County in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1818 to 1820, and Virginia's 16th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1825 to 1833.

Armstrong was born in 1782 in Lisburn, County Antrim, Kingdom of Ireland (in present-day Northern Ireland), and emigrated to the United States in 1792. He studied law under Charles Magill, became a lawyer, and settled in Hampshire County, Virginia (present-day West Virginia). Armstrong served in a number of civil service positions, including postmaster of Paddytown (present-day Keyser);[a] U.S. tax collector appointed by President James Madison; director of the Bank of the Valley of Virginia; member of the Virginia Board of Public Works from 1822 to 1823; justice of the peace for Hampshire County from 1820 to 1852; and Hampshire County sheriff in 1843. Armstrong was chosen as a presidential elector for Virginia in the 1820 and 1824 U.S. presidential elections.

He was elected to two terms in the Virginia House of Delegates and four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, two as an Adamsite Democratic-Republican and two as a National Republican. In Congress, he assisted in passing a bill to appropriate funds to construct the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal in 1828. Following his tenure in Congress, Armstrong engaged in the tavern business and operated the Armstrong House hotel in Romney. In 1862, he relocated to Keyser, where he died in 1865.

Early life and education

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William Armstrong was born on December 23, 1782, in Lisburn, County Antrim, in the Kingdom of Ireland (present-day Northern Ireland).[4][5][6] Armstrong's family was Presbyterian and of Scotch-Irish descent.[6][7] He was a direct descendant of James Armstrong, who participated in the rising of the Covenanters at the Battle of Pentland Hills. He forfeited his estate in 1666 and escaped from Annandale, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, to County Down.[7] In 1792, Armstrong emigrated to the United States with his parents and the family settled in Romney, Virginia (present-day West Virginia).[4][5][8] Following his arrival in Romney, Armstrong worked as a merchant's clerk, and then served as an assistant in the office of the Hampshire County Clerk of Court.[9] Armstrong studied law under Charles Magill in Winchester,[4][5][9] became a lawyer and settled permanently in Hampshire County.[9]

Civil service career

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Armstrong served as the second postmaster of the post office in Paddytown (present-day Keyser, West Virginia)[a] from October 15, 1814, until April 20, 1818.[1][10] President James Madison appointed him a United States tax collector in the 6th District of Virginia in 1813;[9] he also served in this position in 1818 and 1819.[4][5] In January 1818, Armstrong was unanimously elected as a director of the Bank of the Valley of Virginia's Office of Discount and Deposit in Romney.[11][12] In 1822 and 1823, he served as a member of the Virginia Board of Public Works.[9] Armstrong served as a justice of the peace of Hampshire County from 1820 to 1852,[9][13] and as the sheriff for Hampshire County in 1843.[9][14]

Political career

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Armstrong first ran for election as a Democratic-Republican to represent Hampshire County as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in 1811, however, he lost to Federalists Alexander King and Francis White.[15] In 1812, he ran again for election to represent the county in the House of Delegates losing to King and White.[16] In August 1816, Armstrong and John Jack represented Hampshire County at a convention in Staunton to reform the Constitution of Virginia.[17] Armstrong was finally elected to represent the county in the House of Delegates in 1818, alongside White,[18][19] and served his first term from December 7, 1818, until March 13, 1819.[20][21] He was reelected with White in 1819 and served his second term from December 6, 1819, until February 25, 1820.[21][22] Edward McCarty and White succeeded him in 1820.[23]

In 1816, when Virginia's presidential electors convened at his father's hotel in Romney, Armstrong became interested in national politics.[4] He was chosen as a presidential elector for Virginia in the 1820[24] and 1824 U.S. presidential elections.[9][25][26] Armstrong ran for election as an Adamsite Democratic-Republican against Federalist Edward Colston to represent Virginia's 16th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1825, and won.[5][21][27] Virginia's 16th congressional district comprised Berkeley, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, and Morgan counties in the present-day Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.[27] Armstrong represented the 16th district in the 19th Congress from March 4, 1825, to March 3, 1827.[28] He was elected for a second term as an Adamsite Democratic-Republican and served in the 20th Congress from March 4, 1827, to March 3, 1829.[5][21][28] Armstrong joined U.S. House representatives Michael C. Sprigg from Maryland, and Andrew Stewart and Chauncey Forward from Pennsylvania to assist in passing a bill to appropriate funds for the construction of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal in 1828.[29] Armstrong was elected for a third term as a National Republican and served in the 21st Congress from March 4, 1829, to March 3, 1831, and for his fourth term as a National Republican and served in the 22nd Congress from March 4, 1831, to March 3, 1833.[5][21][28] By 1839, Armstrong was the chairperson of Hampshire County's Whig Party.[30]

Later life and death

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Armstrong's headstone
Armstrong's gravesite at Indian Mound Cemetery

Following his tenure in Congress, Armstrong engaged in the tavern business.[4] The arrival of the Northwestern Turnpike (present-day U.S. Route 50) to Romney in 1830 created a greater demand for inns and hotels in the town.[31][32] Armstrong and John Kirk, and Armstrong's wife, Jane, and John Baker White were issued two of at least six hotel licenses in Romney within five years after the turnpike's construction.[31][32] Armstrong's hotel, known as Armstrong House, was built around 1800 on Lot 86 at East Main and North Grafton Streets.[33][34][35] Armstrong sold his hotel to Thomas A. Keller in 1848, after which it was known as Keller House or Keller Hotel.[33][35][36] Armstrong remained in Romney until 1862.[4]

Armstrong was a slave owner.[37] He possessed 16 acres (6.5 ha) in Romney, including Lots 81 and 91 near the intersection of present-day Antigo Place and Sioux Lane, where he reserved 0.5 acres (0.20 ha) for an African-American cemetery.[38]

He relocated to New Creek Station (formerly Paddytown, present-day Keyser) during the American Civil War, where he resided at his son Edward McCarty Armstrong's mansion.[39] His son Edward joined the Confederate States Army, while Armstrong remained at the mansion with his daughter-in-law and grandchildren.[39] He died in New Creek Station on May 10, 1865.[4][40] Reverend James H. Leps conducted his funeral service in Romney,[40] and he was interred at Indian Mound Cemetery in Romney.[4][41]

Personal life

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Armstrong was first married to Elizabeth Ann McCarty (June 1, 1786 – July 4, 1843), daughter of Edward McCarty and Elizabeth Millar, from Keyser.[9][42] They had four children together:

  • Eliza Jane Armstrong Gibson (December 21, 1804 – February 19, 1847), married David Gibson[43]
  • William James Armstrong (June 28, 1813 – June 19, 1847), married on December 14, 1836, to Susan C. White, daughter of Hampshire County Clerk of Court John Baker White and Alcinda Louisa Tapscott White[41][44][45]
  • Edward McCarty Armstrong (October 18, 1816 – April 1, 1890), first married to Hannah Angeline Pancake, then married on October 23, 1856, to Louisa Tapscott White, daughter of Hampshire County Clerk of Court John Baker White and Frances Ann Streit White[39][46]
  • James Dillon Armstrong (September 23, 1821 – September 4, 1893), married Anne Waterman Foote, daughter of Presbyterian Reverend William Henry Foote[41][47]

Armstrong and McCarty were married for 42 years.[9] Following Elizabeth's death, he married his cousin Jane Baxter Armstrong (June 7, 1799 – August 30, 1874).[9]

References

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Explanatory notes

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  1. ^ a b c The post office for Keyser, West Virginia, was first established as Paddytown in 1811; reestablished as Paddy Town in 1852; then renamed New Creek Depot in 1852; then Wind Lea in 1855; then New Creek Station in 1857; and finally Keyser in 1874, when the city was incorporated.[1][2] Keyser was located within Virginia until the formation of West Virginia in 1863; and it was a part of Hampshire County until the creation of Mineral County in 1866.[1][3]

Citations

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  1. ^ a b c "Postmasters by City: Keyser Post Office, Mineral County West Virginia". United States Postal Service Postmaster Finder. United States Postal Service. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  2. ^ Wolfe 1974, pp. 4, 8, 12 & 22.
  3. ^ Wolfe 1974, p. 20.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Munske & Kerns 2004, p. 46.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "Armstrong, William (1782–1865)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Congress Joint Committee on Printing and United States Government Publishing Office. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Leps 1865, p. 3.
  7. ^ a b Scotch-Irish Society of America 1894, p. 206.
  8. ^ Leps 1865, p. 4.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Leps 1865, p. 5.
  10. ^ Wolfe 1974, p. 4.
  11. ^ "Valley Bank" (PDF). Alexandria Gazette and Daily Advertiser. Alexandria, Virginia. January 21, 1818. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  12. ^ "Valley Bank". Richmond Enquirer. Richmond, Virginia. January 24, 1818. p. 4. Archived from the original on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  13. ^ Maxwell & Swisher 1897, p. 276.
  14. ^ Maxwell & Swisher 1897, p. 279.
  15. ^ "Virginia 1811 House of Delegates, Hampshire County". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. American Antiquarian Society and Tufts University Libraries Digital Collections and Archives. Archived from the original on October 13, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  16. ^ "Virginia 1812 House of Delegates, Hampshire County". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. American Antiquarian Society and Tufts University Libraries Digital Collections and Archives. Archived from the original on October 13, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  17. ^ "Journal of the Proceedings of a Convention, Begun and Held at Staunton, the 19th Day of August in the Year 1816" (PDF). Virginia Argus. Richmond, Virginia. September 4, 1816. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  18. ^ Munske & Kerns 2004, pp. 46–47.
  19. ^ Swem & Williams 1918, pp. 98 & 100–101.
  20. ^ Swem & Williams 1918, p. 98.
  21. ^ a b c d e "Biographical Information: Armstrong, William Jr". The Virginia Elections and State Elected Officials Database Project, 1776–2007. University of Virginia Center for Politics and University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  22. ^ Swem & Williams 1918, pp. 100–101.
  23. ^ Munske & Kerns 2004, p. 47.
  24. ^ "Nomination of Electors" (PDF). Richmond Enquirer. Richmond, Virginia. February 19, 1820. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  25. ^ "The Presidency: Virginia". Maryland Gazette and State Register. Annapolis, Maryland. March 11, 1824. p. 2. Archived from the original on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  26. ^ "The members of the two Houses of the Virginia Legislature, convened again on Wednesday last, at 6 o'clock, in the Capitol, agreeably to their adjournment" (PDF). Constitutional Whig. Richmond, Virginia. February 27, 1824. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  27. ^ a b "Virginia 1825 U.S. House of Representatives, District 16". A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. American Antiquarian Society and Tufts University Libraries Digital Collections and Archives. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  28. ^ a b c Lewis 1906, p. 186.
  29. ^ "Canal Dinner" (PDF). Phenix Gazette. Alexandria, Virginia. June 12, 1828. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  30. ^ "At a Meeting of the Whigs of Hampshire County" (PDF). Virginia Free Press. Charles Town, Virginia. September 5, 1839. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Chronicling America.
  31. ^ a b Brannon 1976, pp. 10–11.
  32. ^ a b Federal Writers' Project 1937, p. 59.
  33. ^ a b Munske & Kerns 2004, p. 80.
  34. ^ Federal Writers' Project 1937, pp. 18 & 59.
  35. ^ a b "Keller Hotel Register Book Index". HistoricHampshire.org. HistoricHampshire.org, Charles C. Hall. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  36. ^ Federal Writers' Project 1937, p. 18.
  37. ^ "Congress slaveowners", The Washington Post, January 13, 2022, retrieved January 15, 2022
  38. ^ "Armstrong Colored Cemetery". HistoricHampshire.org. HistoricHampshire.org, Charles C. Hall. Archived from the original on October 13, 2020. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  39. ^ a b c Wolfe 1974, p. 14.
  40. ^ a b Leps 1865, p. 1.
  41. ^ a b c "Indian Mound Cemetery: "A" through "C"". HistoricHampshire.org. HistoricHampshire.org, Charles C. Hall. Archived from the original on November 11, 2019. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  42. ^ Wolfe 1974, p. 3.
  43. ^ Miller & Maxwell 1913, p. 1199.
  44. ^ Maxwell & Swisher 1897, p. 741.
  45. ^ Lantz, Emily Emerson (August 27, 1905). "Maryland Heraldry: History of Distinguished Families and Personages. The Baker Lineage and Arms". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore. p. 12. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  46. ^ Lyle 1897, p. 94.
  47. ^ Scotch-Irish Society of America 1894, pp. 206–207.

Bibliography

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