342:, which reformed the governance of local boroughs, Armstrong was elected as a reformist candidate in the Newcastle town council, an office he attained with a substantial majority against the reactionary Matthew Anderson. At the council, Armstrong voted in favour of the removal of the furniture and fittings of the Mayor's residence, and the end of the tradition of the Mayor's feasts, held at the public expense. His success didn't sustain in the following, 1839 election, where he was defeated by a landslide by the "more formidable opponent", George Palmer, losing his seat 38 votes to 8. Upon Palmer's retirement, Armstrong returned to the office in 1842 unopposed. In January 1849, upon the vacancy of a seat, he was unanimously elected an alderman of Newcastle. The aldermen were not so harmonious when, a few months later, he was proposed to be made the
246:. Armstrong attended the local village school, developing an early interest in mathematics, and attending alongside the children of John Losh, from the local Losh family: James (1763–1833), George (1766–1846) and William. The Losh family were powerful in this area. They were descended from the Arloshes, who had occupied the area for over two centuries, and resided in the large local mansion known as Woodside. Though the family were never honoured with titles, John Losh was known locally as "the big black squire" of Woodside. At this school, Armstrong was tutored by the local priest, William Gaskin, an eccentric man whom James Losh recalled as "uncouth in his manners and abrupt and confused in his manner of speaking", if also "a man of considerable powers of mind". Armstrong was also likely introduced to the celebrated mathematics teacher,
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399:. Before the 1835 Act, the council had been derided for its neglect of the river, and many hoped the new council would attend to its problems. In his first term as councillor Armstrong issued a polemical pamphlet of his observations on the river's improvement, and in 1843 (upon the previous chairman's death) promptly took over the local River Committee. Despite the many heated debates Armstrong presided over, "neither he nor the council's appointed engineer had the skills needed to enable a programme of improvement to be pursued with any degree of confidence", according to
283:'s high society. In Summer 1803, the firm went bankrupt, when the abrupt collapse of the Newcastle banking house, Surtrees and Burdon, left George Losh and his partners financially embarrassed, the first of a series of failures that led Losh to migrate to France. Armstrong - then married and with one daughter - was forced to rely on financial support from his wife's family, Diedrich Lubbren, and possibly William Losh, using the funds to start his own enterprise in the corn industry: "Armstrong & Co., merchants,
526:, where he served on the committee. At the Literary and Philosophical Society, Armstrong became close friends with the local solicitor, Armorer Donkin. "Their tastes were similar; their political views harmonized; their aims were practically identical, and they became as brothers" according to local historian, Alfred Cochrane. Donkin remained a family friend and, later in his life, took the younger William as an apprentice.
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522:, and collected a large mathematical library. Armstrong joined the recently founded Newcastle Literary and Philosophical Society in 1798, "a warm supporter of the institution and man of scholarly acquirements" according to a contemporary, and helped found the local Natural History Society. He also provided funds for the establishment of a local
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to
Newcastle cheaper than we can convey it between Newcastle and Carlisle". Armstrong was cautious of a railway system, as a relatively new form of transport, referring to the plan as "spiritless". This argument did not meet with agreement on the committee, and the following year, it recommended the
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Armstrong died on 2 June 1857, having given up many of his offices weeks earlier. Armstrong requested that his son, William, leave his large library of mathematical and local tracts to the
Literary and Philosophical Society, a wish William fulfilled the following year, with 1284 works added to the
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employed by
William Potter for lessons in mechanics. The family initially lived in a three-storey terraced house on 9 Pleasant Row, Shieldfield, where his son, William was born, and spent his early childhood, developing a passion for water and fishing. The house no longer exists, but the remaining
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c. lxiii) was passed. This act dismantled the council's authority over the river, instead putting it under the control of a group of commissioners. The bill was put forth to the House of
Commons in June 1850, naming Armstrong as one of the life commissioners, but, after complaints from the council
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village, where he came into acquaintance with the wealthy Losh family. These contacts were to help him gain a commercial foothold when he moved to
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, joining a Losh-owned corn firm. Upon the proprietors' bankruptcy, Armstrong collected together the funds to establish his own corn
323:, headed by the more radical reformer, James Losh. This preference has variously been suggested as evidence of his innate fear of new technology, or his rational preference as a cautious corn merchant, wanting his stock to be carried in more safe and established modes of transport.
409:. Armstrong's incompetence, as well as the widespread belief that the Committee's funds were being inappropriately used, led to agitation against the Committee, especially from those heavily economically invested in the river (for example, among the residents of
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German merchant, John
Diedrich Lubbren. The Losh family had grown powerful in Newcastle, with George also owning the local Newcastle Fire Office and Water Company, and his brothers - William and James - later becoming influential members of
538:, in the same grave as his wife, who had predeceased him on 8 June 1848, and next to the grave of Armorer Donkin, who had died in 1851. Armstrong and Donkin's graves are, aside from their inscriptions, identical, with the twin low,
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refers to the establishment as the 'Armstrong House', and a stone adjacent to Christ Church, Shieldfield, commemorates it. By the 1820s, with
Armstrong's trade flourishing, the family moved to a larger, 12 acre establishment in
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His financial success in the corn industry allowed
Armstrong to pursue several personal interests, including a passion for mathematics. He contributed to the recreational mathematics journals,
350:, a watercolourist, was selected in his stead to preside over the royal visit. By November the following year, Armstrong was elected mayor; he led a mayoralty described by local historian
392:- a set of taxes on imported food, which kept domestic grain prices high. He spoke out vigorously against any such reform in 1845, not improbably out of self-interest as a corn merchant.
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Armstrong was generally a progressive, but began as a more independent, and sometimes reactionary, politician, remaining a "timid reformer" even afterwards, according to
Welford. In the
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493:, became a prominent industrialist, scientist, and inventor. The Armstrong household allowed William to nurture an early mechanical interest, often visiting the
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society's libraries. This allowed the society "a more complete mathematical department than any other provincial institution in the kingdom" according to Dr.
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In August 1824, Armstrong and
Armorer Donkin, a close friend of Armstrong's, both with a passion for reform in their city, were appointed by the
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Around 1801, Armstrong married Ann Potter, the eldest daughter of William Potter of Walbottle House, and a "highly cultured woman" according to
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417:). Armstrong held out, continuing his demands for reform, which would invariably meet with the formidable opposition of the council until the
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This article is about the corn merchant and local politician of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. For his son who was an engineer and industrialist, see
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Financially established, Armstrong was able to pursue his own interests. Armstrong took part local reformist politics. He and his allies,
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as "quiet and uneventful", in which Armstrong led the "usual festivities" and "presided over the usual number of public meetings".
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or canal between Newcastle and Carlisle. Armstrong clearly saw the importance of his duty, noting: "We can bring corn from the
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interest, contributing to some minor journals, and leaving a large collection of mathematical volumes to the Society.
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Armstrong's wife, Ann and their son, William, later 1st Baron Armstrong, aged 21. Both paintings owned by the
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Armstrong's name was substituted for that of William Rutherford Hunter before the bill was presented to the
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230:(1763–1833), friend of Armstrong, member of the powerful Losh family, and fellow reformer of Newcastle.
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Linsley, Stafford M. (2006). "Armstrong, William (1778–1857), corn merchant and local politician".
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in the firm's counting house. George Losh was here, a senior partner in the firm, alongside the
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W.G. Armstrong: The Life and Times of Sir William George Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of Cragside
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Very little is known of Armstrong's early life. He was born in 1778, in the small village of
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376:, he was decidedly in favour of the Whigs. In 1837, he was divided between two candidates -
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While a local politician, Armstrong primarily concerned himself with the management of the
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1003:. Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne. University of Durham.
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Newcastle Mathematical Libraries: William Armstrong, Charles Hutton and others
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489:, a minor politician and judge. The son, William, later to become first
302:(1779–1851), close friend of Armstrong and fellow reformer of Newcastle.
534:, Secretary of the Society, 1862–93. Armstrong was buried in the local
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507:, where Armstrong built a house, known as South Jesmond House.
250:, by John and James Losh, who both later studied under him at
973:. Vol. 1. London: Walter Scott, Ltd. pp. 106–108.
338:, which had vigorously opposed the act's passage. After the
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William Armstrong's grave at Jesmond Old Cemetery Website
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to a committee to recommend the construction of either a
211:, warmly supporting its growth. Armstrong also pursued a
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On Armstrong's son, containing information on Armstrong
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In 1831, Armstrong, James Losh, and Donkin attended
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1053:Armstrong: The Life and Mind of an Armaments Maker
1022:. Church of Jesus Christ of the Latterday Saints.
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967:"William Armstrong, father of Lord Armstrong"
266:, promptly joining Losh, Lubbren & Co, a
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922:(online ed.). Oxford University Press.
209:Newcastle Literary and Philosophical Society
16:English corn merchant and local politician.
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872:The River Tyne: Its History and Resources
44:Armstrong in an oil painting held by the
851:William Armstrong: Magician of the North
919:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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262:In the mid-1790s, Armstrong arrived in
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182:William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong
21:William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong
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1146:Councillors in Newcastle upon Tyne
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1016:"William Armstrong (1778–1857)".
971:Men of Mark 'twixt Tyne and Tweed
897:"Armstrong, William George"
330:reform meeting in support of the
1077:Family tree of William Armstrong
1019:International Genealogical Index
911:. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
907:Dictionary of National Biography
482:Dictionary of National Biography
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321:Newcastle & Carlisle Railway
834:Friends of Jesmond Old Cemetery
830:"William Armstrong (1778-1857)"
773:Friends of Jesmond Old Cemetery
419:River Tyne Improvement Act 1850
340:Municipal Corporations Act 1835
854:. McNidder and Grace Limited.
469:, the home of Armstrong's son.
187:Armstrong was born in a small
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1151:Mayors of Newcastle upon Tyne
878:. London: Longmans & Co.
270:firm of corn merchants, as a
1105:Mayor of Newcastle-upon-Tyne
936:UK public library membership
291:Career as a local politician
999:Wallis, Peter John (1972).
192:firm: Armstrong, & Co.
169:(1778–1857) was an English
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965:Welford, Richard (1895).
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258:Career as a corn merchant
213:recreational mathematical
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1034:McKenzie, Peter (1983).
219:Early life and education
176:and local politician of
869:Guthrie, James (1880).
434:Personal life and death
1141:People from Cumberland
951:Newcastle City Council
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1055:. Northern Heritage.
693:Mayors & Sheriffs
359:1832 general election
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928:10.1093/ref:odnb/668
536:Jesmond Old Cemetery
532:Robert Spence Watson
487:William Henry Watson
319:construction of the
892:Gurney, Henry Palin
524:chamber of commerce
401:Stafford M. Linsley
372:candidates. By the
312:horse-drawn railway
264:Newcastle upon Tyne
178:Newcastle-upon-Tyne
66:Newcastle Upon Tyne
1090:Political offices
479:, writing for the
477:Henry Palin Gurney
403:, writing for the
378:Charles John Bigge
361:he voted for both
348:Joseph Crawhall II
344:mayor of Newcastle
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1112:Succeeded by
1062:978-0-9555406-9-1
934:(Subscription or
861:978-0-85716-035-5
799:, pp. 20–22.
758:, p. 11, 20.
519:Gentleman's Diary
513:The Ladies' Diary
423:13 & 14 Vict.
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954:. Retrieved
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837:. Retrieved
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654:Gurney 1901
382:William Ord
276:naturalised
248:John Dawson
84:Preceded by
1125:Categories
1109:1850-1851
938:required.)
884:1127098438
812:Heald 2011
797:Heald 2011
756:Heald 2011
681:Heald 2011
666:Heald 2011
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617:Heald 2011
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546:References
397:River Tyne
228:James Losh
205:River Tyne
197:James Losh
189:Cumberland
148:Occupation
143:Ann Potter
1044:505383763
1009:123100890
839:1 January
540:cruciform
390:Corn Laws
308:Moot Hall
78:1850–1851
74:In office
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894:(1901).
467:Cragside
281:Tyneside
268:Quayside
174:merchant
155:merchant
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904:(ed.).
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285:Cowgate
240:Cumbria
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947:(PDF)
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876:(PDF)
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411:North
272:clerk
236:Wreay
122:Wreay
62:Mayor
1057:ISBN
1040:OCLC
1005:OCLC
975:OCLC
958:2019
880:OCLC
856:ISBN
841:2020
516:and
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380:and
367:Whig
365:and
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199:and
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112:Born
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