N. W. Armstrong Biography


	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1899. Pages 741-742

	Scan, OCR and editing by Maurice Krueger,mkrueger@iw.net, 1998. 

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N. W. ARMSTRONG, an honored pioneer and prosperous farmer of Sanborn 
county, residing on the northeast quarter of section 7, Jackson 
township, was born in Cayuga county, New York, in 1837, and is a son of 
Abner A. and Mary Jane Armstrong, who were natives of New Jersey and 
New York, respectively, and were of English descent. He is the second 
in order of birth in a family of seven children, and passed his boyhood 
in the city of Port Byron, New York. His parents ,being anxious to give 
their children the best educational privileges possible, moved to 
Auburn, where they could attend the Auburn Academy. 

When his school days were over, N. W. Armstrong clerked in a general 
store for six months, and thus gained a practical knowledge of business 
methods. During the excitement over the discovery of gold at Pike's 
Peak. he went there, but soon afterward proceeded farther west and 
spent the winter of 1859 in Salt Lake City. The following summer he 
engaged in mining in Nevada, and while on the Pacific slope he 
enlisted, in 1862, in Company H, Fifth California Volunteer Infantry. 
He saw three long years of arduous and faithful service in Texas, New 
Mexico, Arizona and California, and on receiving an honorable discharge 
in 1865, he returned to his old home in New York. In partnership with 
his two brothers he engaged in general mercantile business at Port 
Byron under the firm name of Armstrong Brothers. They also bought and 
sold grain, dealt in coal, owned and operated boats on the Erie canal, 
and kept fancy trotting horses for sale. They speculated quite 
extensively and did a profitable business until 1882, when they 
dissolved partnership. 

It was during that year that our subject came to Sanborn county, South 
Dakota, and located on the northeast quarter of section 7, Jackson 
township. He had only resided here a short time when he married Miss 
Kitty Brink, who had taken up an adjoining homestead, and they now have 
a valuable farm of four hundred and eighty acres. Her parents came to 
this country from Dublin, Ireland, and her father was a railroad man. 
To our subject and his wife have been born two children, namely: Pearl 
J. and John W. 

The first home of the family in this state was a little shanty, only 8 
x 10 feet, in which they were forced to live the first winter on 
account of the delay in getting their money from New York state. R. W. 
Campbell and our subject exchanged work in putting up their shanties. 
Mr. Armstrong broke a few acres of land the first year, but raised no 
crops, and he and his wife underwent most of the hardships and trials 
incident to life on the frontier. In spite of hail and drought they 
have prospered, are entirely free from debt, and from time to time have 
added many useful and valuable improvements to the farm. The buildings 
are good and substantial; there is a barn, 30x 40 feet, with twelve-
foot posts, and a good well with a windmill attached. Mr. Armstrong has 
given the greater part of his attention to the raising of grain, and at 
times has raised a large number of hogs, but during 1898 lost forty-
five head by disease. Since President Grant's second term, he has been 
a stanch Democrat in politics, and is now serving as postmaster at 
Medas to the entire satisfaction of all concerned. There has recently 
been a cheese factory erected on Mr. Armstrong's land, a few rods from 
his residence, of which he is a stockholder.