| Physical medium | Paper handwritten printed photographed typed |
| Organization of material | Organized by type of material; arranged chronologically. |
| Summary |
Collection includes correspondence, memoirs, reports, flight records, flight log, speeches, pamphlets, publications, clippings, albums, photographs, citations, and awards. Correspondents include Lowell Thomas, Ivy Baker Priest, and Stewart L. Udall. One letter (1967) to Armstrong's sister describes the Vietnam combat death of his son, Frank A. "Dutch" Armstrong III. Memoirs and other materials consist of Armstrong's pilots' information files (1929-1945), his individual flight record (1932-1945), World War II tactical mission reports for European and Pacific theaters, an unpublished autobiography, "Wake the Sleeping Giant," biographical sketches, and speeches. Publications include a maintenance manual for the B-17 airplane (1943), "Twelve O'clock High," and "Target Germany" (1943). The newspaper clipping file holds data about Armstrong's career. A photograph file includes pictures of Eisenhower's 1960 trip to Alaska, and an album, "Second to none under General Armstrong," concerns the 2nd Air Force under his administration. |
| Cite as |
Frank A. Armstrong, Jr. Papers, #35, East Carolina Manuscript Collection, East Carolina University. |
| Acquisitions source |
Joyner- 416 items; Mrs. I. T. Valentine and Lt. Gen. Armstrong; Nashville, NC; Tampa, FL; gift; 1967; 1968; 1991. |
| Biographical note | Born in Hamilton, Martin County, N.C., Frank A. Armstrong entered the Army Air Corps as a flying cadet in 1928. In 1941, as a U.S. military observer, he witnessed the German blitz of England. He returned to England in 1942 as commander of the 8th Bomber Command, which he led in the first USAAF raid over Axis territory. As a brigadier general, Armstrong led the bombing mission on Wilhelmshaven, the first American daylight bombing of Germany proper. His experiences as a B-17 flyer during these missions formed the basis for the novel and film, "Twelve O'clock High." In the Pacific theatre, Armstrong led the longest and last heavy bomber raid over Japan. After World War II, he served as Pacific Air chief-of-staff, senior air instructor at the Armed Forces Staff College, and commander-in-chief of the Alaskan Air Command. He pioneered two record-breaking transatlantic flights. |
