David Hartley Armstrong (October 21, 1812March 18, 1893) was a
United States senator
The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
from
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
.
Biography
Born in
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
,
British Canada, he attended
Maine Wesleyan Seminary
Kents Hill School (also known as Kents Hill or KHS) is a co-educational, independent college-preparatory school for boarding and day students. Kents Hill is located in Kents Hill, Maine, 12 miles west of the state capital of Augusta, Maine, August ...
and taught school in
New Bedford, Massachusetts
New Bedford (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ) is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast region. Up throug ...
from 1833 to 1837. He moved to
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
in 1837, and then to
Lebanon, Illinois
Lebanon is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,418 at the 2010 census and had decreased to an estimated 4,256 as of 2018. Like many other places in " Little Egypt" or Southern Illinois, Lebanon was named afte ...
, where he taught at McKendree College (now
McKendree University
McKendree University (McK) is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. McKendree enrolls approximately 2,300 undergraduates and nearly 700 graduate ...
). He returned to Missouri and was principal of the public school at
Benton from 1838 to 1847,
comptroller
A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level executi ...
of St. Louis from 1847 to 1850,
postmaster
A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...
of St. Louis from 1854 to 1858 and a member of the board of
police commissioners from 1873 to 1876.
Armstrong served as a member of the board of
freeholders which framed the charter of St. Louis in 1876, and was appointed as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of
Lewis V. Bogy
Lewis Vital Bogy (April 9, 1813September 20, 1877) was a United States senator from Missouri. Born in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, Ste. Geneviève, he attended the public schools, was employed as clerk in a mercantile establishment, studied law in ...
, serving from September 29, 1877, to January 26, 1879, when a successor was elected and qualified. Armstrong was not a candidate for reelection in 1879; and in 1893 died in St. Louis. Interment was in
Bellefontaine Cemetery.
Armstrong was Vice President of the St. Louis Board and helped command the July 27, 1877 cavalry attack on the strikers outside Schuler Hall, the headquarters of the Executive Committee coordinating the
St. Louis General strike. He reportedly yelled from a shady side of the street for his policemen to "Ride 'em down!".
See also
*
List of United States senators born outside the United States
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, David
1812 births
Pre-Confederation Canadian emigrants to the United States
1893 deaths
Democratic Party United States senators from Missouri
Missouri Democrats
McKendree University faculty
19th-century American politicians
People from St. Louis
Kents Hill School alumni