Charles Armstrong

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While perusing the collections of the Marinette County Logging Museum on Stephenson Island one summer, I came across a newspaper clipping pasted in a scrapbook. The story was about a man named Charles Armstrong, then age 89 and living in Portland. (Oregon? Maine? The name of the newspaper and state were not recorded.) He was described as a survivor of the Peshtigo Fire, who was seven years old in 1871 (from this I figured the article was written about 1953).

At the time, I did not have the time to transcribe the article, nor the presence of mind to ask the museum staff if it could be photocopied on site. When I do get a copy of the article, I will post it here.

From the 1870 census of Oconto County, Peshtigo Township:

Armstrong, Ferdinand - Age 27, Laborer, born in Maine
Armstrong, Theresa - Age 35, keeps house, born in Maine
Mary, 17, at home, born in Maine
Nellie, 7, school, born in Michigan
Charles, 5, school, born in Michigan
Jennie, 4, at home, born in Michigan

Next door lived Moses Armstrong (Ferdinand's brother?) and his family.

Some time after the fire, Ferdinand Armstrong opened a store in Peshtigo.