JOHN H. ARMSTRONG FAMILY
PAPERS, 1828-1957

Collection #
M 0410
OM 0112

Table of Contents

Collection Information
Biographical Sketch
Scope and Content Note
Folder List
Cataloging Information 

Processed by
Julie Moore
July, 1984

Updated 3 January 2002
Manuscript Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269 

www.indianahistory.org

COLLECTION INFORMATION

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

John H. Armstrong was born in Hamilton Co., Ohio in 1809, the youngest child of revolutionary soldier Colonel John Armstrong (1755-1816). On May 6, l830, he married Susannah L. Beggs and in June l835, the couple moved to LaPorte County, where he became a successful cabinet maker, lumber dealer, and farmer. For a short time, Feb.-Sept. l865, Armstrong served in Company "A," 151st Indiana Regiment. He had a great interest in the Spiritualism movement which became popular in Indiana in the 1870's. His wife, Susannah, also held a belief in Spiritualism, and was a noted healer and seer in LaPorte County. Genealogical records indicate that the couple had six children. Armstrong died in 1885 in LaPorte.

The collection includes the papers of a number of Armstrong's relatives, including the Adkins, Beggs, Andrew, Hall, and Loomis families. The largest group of papers belong to the family of Armstrong's son-in-law, Alphonso Adkins, a LaPorte railroad man. Other Adkins family members include his son, Irvin Ryan Adkins, a Chicago, Illinois businessman, and his daughter, Alta Viola Adkins, a Hammond, Indiana schoolteacher. Beggs family papers include those of Armstrong`s father-in-law, James Beggs, a politician from Clark County, as well as papers from other Beggs family members of Plainfield, Illinois. Andrew family members include Abraham Piatt Andrew Jr. of LaPorte, Armstrong's brother-in-law; Viola J. Andrew of Ottumwa, Iowa; and other Andrew family members from Michigan City, Indiana. The Hall family are Armstrong's in-laws, and include Banks Hall and Batheny Hall of Baldwin City, Kansas, and John Hall of Ohio. Loomis family papers include those from Henry Loomis, a LaPorte farmer, and Alphonso Adkins` father-in-law.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The collection includes family correspondence, financial papers, writings, and family history information, primarily from the period 1850 to 1902. The first part of the correspondence consists of letters written to John H. and Susannah L. Armstrong, principally from their children and grandchildren living in Jeffersonville and Centerville, Indiana, and Nebraska, Oregon, and Minnesota. Other Armstrong letters are from family friends.

The Adkins family papers include letters between Alphonso Adkins and his wife Mary, dating from 1856 to 1881, when Alphonso was working and travelling on a railroad through Nebraska, and Mary was living in LaPorte. The remainder of the Adkins correspondence consists mainly of letters addressed to Mary Adkins, and are from her mother, Susannah Armstrong; her children Alta V. and Irvin R. Adkins; and various cousins and friends.

The Beggs family letters are from the period 1833 to 1893, and consist primarily of correspondence between John Beggs of Plainfield, Illinois and his sister, Susannah Armstrong. Much of the Hall family correspondence consists of letters to the Armstrongs from Batheny Hall in Baldwin City, Kansas (1857-ca.1880), and from John Hall in Mt. Vernon and Columbus, Ohio (1886, 1892). The Andrew family correspondence consists primarily of letters written from Viola J. Andrew in Ottumwa, Iowa to the Armstrongs in LaPorte (1872-1880). There are only two Loomis family letters, both containing family news. Most of the miscellaneous correspondence consists of family news. However, there are also three letters, one dated 1868 and two undated, addressing "Mr. President" and concerning usage of a farming tool and the granting of voting rights.

The collection also contains receipts and financial records from the period 1839 to 1909. The largest number of financial papers are those of the Armstrongs and are mainly tax-related. An account book from the 1840's and 1850`s, possibly belonging to John H. Armstrong, contains financial records and many writings on Spiritualism. The collection also includes Armstrong and Adkins family legal documents, deeds, and real estate transaction records, 1850-1897; teaching licenses of Alta V. Adkins, 1901, 1924; and poetry and other personal writings concerning Spiritualist beliefs.

Finally, the collection includes genealogical material for the Armstrong and related families; LaPorte County pamphlets and publications, including The Crisis, November 1, 1862, a semi-monthly newspaper which dealt with concerns of the "New Christian Church"; and various newspaper clippings, 1881-1954, giving historical information about LaPorte, and the Armstrong and related families.

Oversize materials in the collection include two love letters written to Susannah L. Beggs; deeds, and real estate records belonging to John H. Armstrong; educational record; personal writing; newspapers; advertisements. (See OM 0112, folder 1)

Sources:
From the Recollections of Catherine Piatt Andrew, a LaPorte Pioneer, by Catherine Piatt Andrew, 1973.
History of LaPorte County, Indiana, and its Townships, Towns, and Cities, by Jasper Packard. S.E. Taylor and Co., 1876, p. 377.
History of LaPorte County, Indiana, Chas. C. Chapman and Co., 1880, p. 905.

FOLDER LIST

CATALOGING INFORMATION

For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:

1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog
2. Click on the "Local Catalog" icon.
3. Search for the collection by its call number, using the letter or letters designation and four digits (e.g., M 0715, SC 2234).
4. When you find the collection, go to the "Holdings" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.