Gen. John Armstrong
Carlisle, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
"Hero of Kittanning," Revolutionary officer, member of Continental Congress, County Judge, lived in a house on this site. Died at Carlisle, 1795. Buried in Old Graveyard, two blocks south.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
General John Armstrong lived on this site and earned lasting fame as the "Hero of Kittanning" for his 1756 raid on a Delaware stronghold during the French and Indian War. He went on to serve as a Revolutionary officer, a member of the Continental Congress, and a county judge, dying in Carlisle in 1795 and resting in the Old Graveyard two blocks south. His long career spanned the frontier wars and the founding of the nation.
Why it matters
His life traces the arc from colonial frontier conflict to the creation of the American republic, embodied in a single Carlisle citizen-soldier.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Appalachian Trail Museum13.2 mi away
- Ye Olde Sulphur Spa Historical Society13.6 mi away
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Related people
- · John Armstrong
Related events
- · Kittanning Expedition
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Col. Timothy Green
Dauphin, PA · est. 1948
Timothy Green's life traced the whole arc of Pennsylvania's revolutionary generation. He first bore arms as an officer in the French and Indian War, then in June 1774 joined his neighbors in signing the Hanover Resolves, a bold early declaration of readiness to resist British authority. Through the Revolution that followed he stood out as a leader of this Susquehanna-region community, and he rests today in the graveyard just south of the marker.
Col. James Burd
Highspire, PA · est. 1946
From his home "Tinian" on the Susquehanna, Col. James Burd served the frontier in the French and Indian War, helping cut roads for Gen. Edward Braddock's ill-fated 1755 expedition and later commanding at Fort Augusta, a key defensive post upriver at Sunbury. When the Revolution came, the veteran soldier again took up the patriot cause. His house, the marker notes, still stood on the opposite hill.
Burd Tombs
Middletown, PA · est. 1946
Col. James Burd was among the frontier soldiers who fought in the French and Indian War, the 1750s–60s struggle that pushed European powers and their Native allies across the Pennsylvania backcountry. From his estate "Tinian," Burd also helped author the Middletown Resolves in June 1774, one of many local declarations of grievance that swept the colonies on the eve of the Revolution. He and his wife, Sarah Shippen — of a prominent Pennsylvania family — lie buried near the entrance of the Middletown Cemetery.
Gen. William Irvine
Carlisle, PA · est. 1949
General William Irvine came to Carlisle as an early physician before public life and war swept him up: he served in Pennsylvania's Provincial Convention, took up arms as a Revolutionary officer, and commanded the strategic western post at Fort Pitt. The house he occupied stood on this site before 1800. His path from frontier doctor to frontier general captures the versatility demanded of Revolutionary-era leaders.