A Life of Art and Exploration

Born in Dublin, Ireland, William Armstrong was a painter and watercolorist who became one of the early professional artists of Toronto, Ontario. His journey began with studies in Ireland and an apprenticeship in England as a railway engineer with the Midland Railway. After immigrating to Canada in 1851, he settled in Toronto, where he found a market for his artwork through illustrated news. His watercolours of local scenes and events were frequently reproduced as monochrome wood engravings for weekly periodicals.

Armstrong was a man of diverse technical skills, incorporating photography into his repertoire. In 1855, he co-founded a company with his nephew, Daniel Manders Beere, and later Humphrey Lloyd Hime. This venture was responsible for a 360-degree panorama sequence of the City of Toronto between 1856 and 1857. As a draftsman, Armstrong accompanied various survey expeditions westward starting in 1859, using his drawings to report on terrain, human activity, and the progress of expeditions.

Artistic Legacy and Teaching

Throughout his career, Armstrong’s work captured significant historical moments, such as the Wolseley Expedition to the Red River Colony in 1870. His compositions, including Red River Expedition, Purgatory Landing, were featured in the Canadian Illustrated News. His artistic reach extended to international exhibitions, including the 1855 Exposition Universelle in Paris and the 1865 Dublin International Exhibition. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts until 1887.

Beyond his own practice, Armstrong was a dedicated educator. He taught drawing at the Toronto Normal School starting in 1864 and served at the University of Toronto from 1872 to 1877. Even after his retirement in 1897, he continued to teach art from his home until his death in Toronto. His watercolour landscapes of the Great Lakes are preserved in several notable collections, including: