Morning journal and courier., 1885-07-25
OBITUARY.

GMAF@cGeFs
 MT. William O. Armstrong, of the promi | nent and well known skipping firm of L. | w. 6 F. Armstrong; died at his residence at No. 38 Howe street yesterday morning at | about o'clock after an illness of two weeks with dysentery. His health had not been as 1 vigorous as formerly for the past few years, l but he had attended to business matters about as usual np to the time of his ileess.
 He retained consciousness until few hours
 family were with the sufferer and he passed away surrounded by all that could tend to
 minister to his comfort. The funeral will he
 held Sunday afternoon at o'clock from the 1 residence. Rev. Mir Ford, ot the George
 street M. E. church, and probably several of 1 the fermer pastors will oficiate.
 The deceased had long been one of our l leading and prominent citizens and was | highly esteemed in all the walks of life. He was son of John Armstrong, and was born | in West Haven sixty six eaSs ago. He was | the third son 4n family of four sons and l three daughters His brothers are Sereno, Lo- renzo and Fhilando. His sisters are all living, Mrs, Henry B. Thompson, Mrs. Robert H. Mills and Mrs. A. G. Waldron. They are all l widowed and reside in this city. William Q. l attended school in West Haven and New l Haven. When about 1s he was called by MT. Ridley, of West Haven, to take the DO 1 sition ia his store as clerk. MT. Ridley's 1 store was old frame building which stood where Thompson's block in West Haven now stands. It was the princi- pal village store. Not long after the young
 man took hold at MT. Ridley's the latter
 was taken i'll and was prevented by illness 1 from attending to his business for months, dnring which time young MT. Armstrong I ID anaged the business with great skill. Soon 1 after he engaged in the grocery business in New Haven at the head of the wharf in an old | wooden structure at the junction opposite l the old custom house. He was in business there witL his brothers, Serene and Lorehzo l After short time there, business increasing, {, Mr. ElnathAn AtwateF, the owner of the 1 building erected for the firm a brick build ing. the same now occupied by Schwed. In the interim the firm did business | in an old stone building a few to the old stand in the new
 building the firm did business there a few years. They then seeing a larger business opportunity and grasping the situation es
 tended their business, going into the grain and feed buying business. This was new
 business here and the firm bought from Al
 bany and soon established line of packets of their own-the first from this city to Al bany. This was the beginning of their ship ping business and the firm dropped out of l the grocery business. Their old stand when at the junction was taken by Charles
 Shelton, now of West Haven, and Wm. R. Shelton, ex-Mayor of this city. In 1S45 Messrs. l., and w. Armstrong engaged in the " est India shipping business and Phi lando, younger brother, later came into the firm. The firm prcspered. Their office
 was On Long Wharf for years a few doors below, their former stand, and neighbors in business in those and previous years were Messrs. Massena Clarke, Daniel
 Trowbridge, George Wylie, the Messrs Shelton and other well knewn gentlemen, then young men working their way to the prosperity they afterward also attained to- The Armstrong; shipping business grew and hourished greatly. Their office was in late years in the old custom house. Recent ly the office was transferred to New York, branch office being retained heie. For some time past the firm had been composed of Lo- renzo and William Armstrong, Philando hay ing renred few years ago. MT. William O. Armstrong was member of the firm at the time of his death, although he had for several years taken no very active part in the business operations of the firm, He was. however, deeply interested in it's success. For some time past the sons of Lorenzo and Will liam have conducted the affairs of the con- cern. The one thing fin which William O. Arnstrong's interest was centered, aside from his family and business, was his church He was one of the founders of the George street Methodist church and has been more clessly identified with this place
 of worship probably than any other man. Various offices of trust and honor in connee-
 tlon With the church were held by him from time to time and he was extremely liberal in his contributions. He attended there up to
 the beginning of his last illness and was ac-
 tive to the last. His death will be deeply
 lamented by the George street church.
 In his daily life Mir. Armstrong was quiet, unobtrusive and scrupulously just in his dealings with men. He was not public character, and was little known outside his business and church circles, preferring to keep aloof from public affairs. Various at different times rendered him, but he scrupulously declined them. He, how ever, was for years a director of the New Haven County bank and was for years also director of the New Haven Water con- pany and leading and prominent in it's coun- manager of it's affairs. He was also the pres ident of the old New Haven and Northamp ton steamboat line from this city to New York. The deceased was man of great ex ecutive ability and an indefatigable worker, accomplishing much. He was generous friend to the poor.
 He was plain, simple and unostentatious and man of few words. While at Saratoga Springs one season he was mistaken for Gen eral Grant, there being points of facial re semblanee and carriage between the two men. An illustration of his en- ergy is shown in the circumstance that he learned late in life to write with his left hand, his right hand having failed him owing to some impairment of it's nerves. This was ten or twelve years ago. The de- ceased was beloved in his family and in the church. Shortly before his last illness he was planning to take an extended trip into the Canadas, taking four of his grandchil dren along He leaves beside his widow two sons, Roland D., who for five years past has resided in New York, William F. of this city, and Mrs. Charles w. Smith, wife of a merchant in New York city.
 Death of William 1T. Peters.
 The Waterbury American of last evening says: William Thompson Peters, who re- sides with his only son, Charles W. Peters, on the Watertown road in this town, died | this morning, aged eighty years and two 1 months. He was the son of the Hon. John | Thompson Peters, for many years judge of | the Supreme court, an office which he held ! until the day of his death. William Thomp- | son Peters was born in Hebron May 30, 1905. | graduated at the academical department of | Yale in 1895 and at the medical department | in 1880. In 1926 he married the daughter of | Ithiel Town. Subsequently he founded the | old Apothecaries' Hall at New Haven so long | known Dy US qualnb DlDllcal slgn or the l Good Samaritan. In 1850, his health failing, he removed to Cheshire and engaged in
 farming. During his residence of twenty | years in Cheshire he was most prominent l figure in town affairs and held the esteem l and confidence of his fellow citizens, as was l evinced by their repeatedly electing him to offices of trust and honor. Besides filling | the offices of clerk, treasurer and judge of probate, he was several times sent to repre- | sent the town in the legislature, and twice l he was elected State Senator from the sixth | district He was also United States assessor l rnd collector under President Lincoln. The | old historical colonial character, Governor | Peters, was his uncle The funeral will be | from his sons residence on the Watertown l road at 9:30 Sunday morning, and the burial | will be at Cheshire.
 SIT Knights Havinga a Good Tim c.
 Acting Superintendent Wood of the Hou- satonic road accompanied the Sir Knights of | Hamilton commandery as far as Lennox on |