Armstrong, James (Quarter-Master)

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Armstrong, James (Quarter-Master)

ARMSTRONG, JAMES (QUARTER-MASTER). (1748–1828). Continental officer. Pennsylvana. Born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on 29 August 1748, Armstrong was the son of John Armstrong, a member of the Continental Congress, and brother of John Armstrong, Jr., a future secretary of war. Armstrong attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) before studying medicine in Philadelphia. In 1769 he set up practice in Winchester, Virginia. Armstrong served as a medical officer and quartermaster of the Second Pennsylvania Battalion, starting on 20 February 1776. He was promoted to captain on 1 January 1779. The record is unclear, but he may have been captured at Dorchester, South Carolina, on 13 December 1781, remaining a prisoner until the end of the war. It is certain that, after the war, Armstrong spent three years in England before returning to Carlisle in 1788. In addition to his medical practice, Armstrong served as a judge and represented his district in Congress from 1793 to 1795. In 1808 he accepted an appointment to the Cumberland County Court, holding that position until his death 6 May 1828.

SEE ALSO Armstrong, John, Jr.; Armstrong, John, Sr.

                              revised by Michael Bellesiles

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