Pvt. Robert Lee Armstrong was born on September 13, 1924, in Blackhawk, South Dakota, to Gerald T. Armstrong and Josephine M. Steffen-Armstrong and had a sister. His mother passed away in 1930, and his father married Carrie Rotgers. He attended grade school and one year of high school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He moved to Maywood, Illinois, to live with his uncle, his dad’s brother, Gordon, and his aunt, Alberta, who became his legal guardians, at 156 South 19th Avenue. He attended Proviso Township High School for his remaining years in high school and graduated in 1939. He registered with Selective Service on December 12, 1942, and stated he was a student and working at his former high school
Believing he was going to be drafted into the Army, he enlisted on June 14, 1943, and was inducted on June 28th and given the Serial Number 36, 753, 648. He did his basic training at Fort Custer, Michigan, and upon completing it, he was sent to Camp McClellan, Anniston, Alabama, and then Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, where he was assigned to Company A, 272nd Infantry Regiment, 69th Infantry Division.
His company was at the firing range on April 16, 1944, when a light machine gun was accidently discharged hitting him. According to military documents, a bullets severed his left carotid artery and left jugular vein resulting in him quickly bleeding to death. The next day his uncle and aunt learned of his death. His body was taken to the Hulett Undertaking Company in Hattiesburg and embalmed. By train, he was returned to Maywood, Illinois. From Maywood, his casket was sent to the Egelhof Funeral Service in Dubuque, Iowa. He was buried at the Fairview Cemetery, in Farley, Iowa
