Armstrong/Booth

[realestatenovelist]

I'm looking for any information on Robert Armstrong, possibly born July or August 1777.  He married Ann Booth(e) (born around 1786) around 1800 or so.   They had ten children before leaving Ireland, Edward (1804), James (1806), Eliza (1808), Sarah/Sally (1810), Margaret (1812), Alexander (1814), Robert (1816), Jane (1818), John (1819) and my ancestor George L (1823). 

Sometime between 1825 and 1835 they left Ireland and settled in Berkshire, VT and just north of Berkshire in Canada.  They had four more children, William, Samuel, Mary Ann and Sarah in Vermont. 

According to Robert Sr.'s naturalization card he departed "Latham County" Ireland in 1835.  I am assuming that should be Leitrim and that the information would have come directly from him when he took his oath.

There also is a document that has circulated the Armstrong family stating the family sailed from Sligo on April 17th 1823 and that they came from the county of "Lathram" and town of "Drumsharribo".  I have no idea how accurate this document is or who even wrote it.  And I've been unable to locate the family in any ships register.

Any information would be helpful, as I feel I've exhausted all of my resources on this side of the pond.

Thanks so much.

[aghadowey]

Most likely "Drumsharribo" is Drumshanbo but there's more than one place in Leitrim with the name.
Carrick-on-Shannon Poor Law Union:
- Drumshanbo townland, Kiltoghert civil parish
- Drumshanbo (town)
Mohill Poor Law Union:
- Dunshanbo North and Drumshanbo South townlands in Cloone civil parish

Berkshire, Vermont is in the northern part of the state just south of Quebec so it's possible they arrived in Quebec and then travelled to Vermont.

It's usually difficult to find surviving church records for early 1800s- you need to know what religion the family were in Ireland. Armstrong is a sommong surname in Fermanagh/Cavan/Leitrim/Sligo areas- many of them Church of Ireland or Methodist.

Have a look at Introduction to Irish Records and My Ancestor came from Ireland - where do I start?.

[anniehadden]

Do you have the source for Robert Armstrong & Ann Booth's children's names, birth dates and birth locations? With all that detail, it would be very helpful to know where the information came from. It's not usually on naturalization papers...  and you're very fortunate to have found Robert's documentation with his home origin (Leitrim, Ireland).

Your Armstrongs who emigrated from Ireland to Vermont are included in "The Berkshire, Vermont, Chaffees, and Their Descendants, 1801-1911" by Almer Judson Elliot (Richford, Vermont: Gilpin printing company, 1911) -- viewable on Google Books, in case other researchers are looking for this family. I don't think I saw that much about the immigrant Robert Armstrong, but maybe the children's names and dates were handed down within the family and haven't been included in a genealogy book.

I'm interested in an Ireland-Vermont connection and will be glad to exchange information on these Armstrongs.

In our line from Co. Tyrone, Ireland -- Edward Armstrong (born 1812 Ireland-died 1905 Franklin Co., New York) had a cousin named "Cassius Armstrong" in Vermont, who had 12 children or was one of 12 children. "Cassius" isn't a common name, and we think this might have been "Cassius Henry Armstrong" listed in the Vermont Chaffees book.

Do you know if any Armstrong males in the line of Robert Armstrong and Ann Booth (Co. Leitrim, Ireland to Vermont) have participated in DNA testing? It's a great way to identify ancestors in common. I have three male Armstrong cousins (of our Co. Tyrone ancestry) in FamilyTreeDNA, and we've identified several other major lines from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Regards,
Annie

[realestatenovelist]

Hi Annie,

Thanks for your reply.  The Cassius I know of is indeed Cassius Henry Armstrong- son of John Armstrong and Sally Miranda Chaffee. 

John was a brother to my 3rd great grandfather George L. Armstrong, and the 9th child of Robert Armstrong and Ann Booth. 

Though I haven't found the ship's manifest for the Armstrongs- the names and birth places of the children have been verified in census records, births of thier children, marriage records and death records (In Canada and the US).  I have also visited many of their graves in Berkshire, VT and in Quebec. The first 9 children were born in Ireland, that I know for certain.  (I can email you documents if you wish.)

As for George L- he is the only one with a bit of mystery surrounding him.  The document that I mentioned earlier stated they sailed from Sligo with ten children, though only the names of 9 are mentioned.  George was their 10th child.  Half of the documents I have located for him say he was born in Ireland, and half say Canada.  In addition, half say he was born in 1823 (the year they were supposed to have sailed) and half say he was born in 1825. 

I know for certain the family was in Canada in 1825 because they are in the census. 

I also have birth records for the children born in Canada- William, Samuel, Mary Ann and Sarah, for a total of 14 children. 

The only place I have ever seen mention of where they all lived in Ireland is Robert's naturalization record and the old family document.

Do you know who the wife or parents of your Edward Armstrong were?

Is it possible they are from Franklin County, Vermont, not New York?

[mulbooth]

Robert Armstrong's daughter Eliza (1784-1871) married Thomas Cook(e) and their daughter Rosalinda (1829-1886) married famous Canadian lumberman J.R. Booth in 1853 in Quebec province.
Robert Armstrong died on Jan. 30, 1850 and is buried in Abbots Corner, Que., close to the Vermont border. Apparently he was living in St. Armand, Quebec in 1825 and moved to Berkshire, Vermont in 1838 and became an American citizen in 1843. His wife Ann died in 1871 and is buried at Abbots Corner as well.
I've obtained this information through research I'm doing on a proposed biography of J.R. Booth, and would appreciate any background information you might have on the Armstrongs and Booths and especially their connection to Leitrim or Roscommon counties.

[Edward McCaffrey]

armstrongs still around the drumshanbo area and a booth family in the ballinamore area

[dtemple]

Hello Realestatenovelist and others, I've enjoyed your comments and I can add some information as well. I'm not sure if this message board is still current, so I'll add some information and see if there is an response. 

I am a descendent of Margaret Armstrong (b. 1812) in Drumshanbo, Leitrim, Ireland, she is a daughter of Robert Armstrong and Ann Booth.  Margaret's first husband was James Carty, they settled in St. Armand, Quebec near Frelighsburg, Quebec.  After having seven children, James is accidently killed by the felling of a tree branch, when he and others are helping a new widow (family name - Hagan) gather wood for the winter. (Margaret and James Carty's daughter - Eleanor Carty married George Taylor Hill, they were my great-great-grandparents (George Hill was also from Drumshanbo, Ireland). After her husbands death, Margaret hired a younger man to work the farm with her and eventually marries this gentleman - James Mosgrove.  They had one daughter - Effie Mosgrove (married John Hagan - she married the son of the widow who the men were cutting wood for). 

Effie wrote a letter to a cousin and in it she mentioned her grandparents - Robert and Ann (Booth) Armstrong. I have a copy of the letter.  In the letter she describes Robert and Ann, she says they immigrated from Ireland (1814) and shares the following: "Your Great Grandfather Armstrong was a shoemaker by trade, that being considered good for those days as there was no sale shoes in stores at that time. He was a lame man, always carried a cane. He also had a farm near Abbotts Corner where he and his wife both lived an died in their farm. She (Ann) passed over the great divide three months before her husband. She had the old fashion consumption, was ailing a long time. Her husband had a shock. Mother (Margaret) told me he died soon after this stroke."  The letter later describes other family members and it's really quite interesting.  If anyone is interested in hearing more, please let me know.

I thought it was interesting to see the dates and information you had about the large family born in Drumshanbo, Ireland and their possible dates of travel to the US/Canada.  In later Census's in Canada, my ancestor Margaret is always indicated as having been born in Ireland.

Thank you for all your info,