Charlotte Laura Armstrong
ID # 3247, (1838-1882)
| Father | Thomas George Armstrong (1809-1838) |
| Mother | Charlotte Fellows (1819-1898) |
| Birth | Charlotte Laura Armstrong was born on 25 September 1838. |
| Marriage | She married Andrew Lemon, son of John Lemon and Martha Heaton, on 22 August 1861. The date for the marriage of Andrew and Charlotte, 22 August, 1861, is as given in a biography that appeared in the Western Law Times, Vol II, Winnipeg, 1891. A marriage registration for Andrew and Charlotte has not been found in the Canada West county marriage registrations, which are reasonably well indexed. At first glance, this is odd, for Charlotte's mother, Charlotte Fellows Armstrong, married Walter Dickson in 1859 and this is to be found with ease. It is entirely possible that the answer to this has to do with handwriting issues - there are certainly legibility issues with the handwriting of the Lincoln County clerk. Since a search of the Lincoln County marriage register shows nothing even faintly resembling the names of Andrew or Charlotte, another answer might well be that the couple married out of province. At the time of their marriage, Charlotte was probably resident in Niagara Town and so a marriage in New York State is entirely possible. Canada East (Quebec) is also (though less likely) a possibility. |
| Death | She died on 3 May 1882 at Boston, Mass, at age 43. |
| Burial | She was buried on 6 May 1882 at St. Mark's Anglican Church Cemetery, Niagara Town. |
| Note | Volume 2 of the Western Law Times of Winnipeg, 1891, as with husband Andrew, is a source of some history for Charlotte. It tells us that her parents were Capt. George Armstrong and his wife Charlotte Fellows. Not mentioned is anything to do with her death in Boston on 3 May, 1882, or her burial in St. Mark's Anglican Church cemetery in present day Niagara-on-the-Lake. Since the biography for Andrew in the above publication states that he went to Winnipeg in the summer of 1882, we must believe that this was after Charlotte's death. We have three sources for Charlotte's death. The first is an index-only provided by Familysearch and which is extracted from Massachusetts Deaths and Burials, 1795-1910, database. This reads as follows: Charlotte L. Lemon died 03 May 1882, age 43. Born 1839. Married. Spouse Andrew Lemon. Father George Armstrong, mother Charlotte. Second, there was a death registration filed at Niagara Town, Lincoln County, which is brief and reads as follows: Death reg. 010288-82 Town of Niagara, Lincoln County Charlotte L. Lemon died 3rd May '82 at Boston, U.S. Church of England. Age 43 years, 7 months, 8 days. Informant 'Certificate'. Registered 6th July, 1882 And the third source is the first page of the Thursday evening May 4, 1882 edition of the Guelph Mercury. At the bottom of the page is a brief death notice, such as would have been entered by the family. It simply states that Charlotte Lemon died in Boston, U.S., Wednesday May 3rd and that the funeral would be at Niagara, Saturday, 1p.m. Also on this page is a much fuller obituary. It tells that she had been ailing for four years and that she had resided in Boston for most of the past year for medical treatment. On the previous Sunday she underwent surgery from which she didn't recover. The obituary tells that she was an accomplished musician and singer. Viewed from the perspective of time, it is reasonable for us to believe that she was the source and inspiration for the successful musical career of her daughter, Laura Gertrude Lemon. Just why Charlotte was buried at St. Mark's Anglican Church in Niagara Town (now Niagara-on-the-Lake) isn't clear. From Andrew's biography, it appears as though he had already arranged to move to Winnipeg. Add to that, Charlotte's mother was still living and she was in Niagara Town with her second husband, Walter Hamilton Dickson. It isn't immediately evident that the couple had family buried in any Guelph area cemetery, so this was probably a logical choice, especially as Andrew himself was from the Niagara area. Looking over photos of the stone, which show two blank sides, it is likely that, at the time, Andrew intended to be buried here himself. The following is taken from a transcription done in 1990 by the Niagara Peninsula Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society - see publication nbr. 3357.. It is evident that Charlotte was buried with her brother and his information is included here. Row 11, nbr. 3 Armstrong/In memory of/John Fellows Armstrong/Captain in Royal Canadian Rifles/born June 26, 1836/died December 18, 1867/Aged 31 years/verse (side) In memory of/Charlotte Laura Armstrong/Beloved wife of/Andrew Lemon/Born Sep. 25th, 1838/Died May 3rd 1882/verse. (Find-a-Grave has a photo of Charlotte's stone. The verse at the bottom reads: Perfect through suffering.) MS545 reel 1 covers St. Mark's Anglican Church records. Page 31 of their burial book has for the first entry to following: Charlotte Laura Lemon, age 43 years. Of Guelph, died in Boston, U. States. Buried May 6, 1882. Officiating minister William McMurray. (Noting the death of Charlotte's father, 31 March 1838, it is evident from the inscription on her gravestone that she was born after the death of her father. See also notes for Charlotte's mother with regard to petition number 24 which was written at Bytown. The petition is undated, but the covering page written by a government official for the petition is dated October 17, 1838. Wherever Charlotte the mother was residing at the time, she was likely in Bytown when Charlotte the daughter was born. At a guess, Charlotte Sr. was probably with her parents.) The 1861 Canadian census was not begun until 14th August of the year. Hence, we are able to find Laura Armstrong enumerated with her mother and step-father, Charlotte and Walter Dickson, in Niagara Town. She is shown as age 22. Andrew is already a barrister and, apparently, on his own in Guelph in 1861. They are of course married a few days after the census was taken and they appear together in Guelph in the 1871 and 1881 census. |
Children of Charlotte Laura Armstrong and Andrew Lemon |
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| Last Edited | 17 Jul 2020 |