William Weaver Armstrong - (American, 1862-1906)
 
Biography:
William Weaver Armstrong was born in Ontario, New York during the Civil War in April of 1862.  The Armstrong family moved to California in 1876 and settled in Oakland. William's only art training appears to have been from his father who was a talented painter. While maintaining a studio in Oakland, he made many painting trips in northern California from Santa Cruz to the Oregon border. A loner and a quiet, taciturn man, on one of these trips he married an Indian girl named Grace, much to the consternation of his parents. 
 
He was first listed in the Oakland City Directory in 1884 as a farmer at 509 East Fourteenth Street. By 1887, he was listed as an artist at 1351 Telegraph Avenue. In 1903 Armstrong invested in and became partners with B. F. Jenkins at 364 7th Street; in a carriage painting business. During his short life span he became a competent and prolific painter of California landscapes. It is believed that during his many excursions and the constant exposure to bad weather led to his death at age 44 of tuberculosis in Oakland on Nov. 26, 1906.
 
His work was exhibited at the Mechanic's Institute in 1885 and 1888, is in the Governor's Mansion in Carson City, NV, and is in the Oakland Museum.