Why did They Build a Neil Armstrong Memorial in Warren, Ohio?

“Why did they build a Neil Armstrong Memorial in Warren, Ohio? Was he born there?” The Newton Falls Public Library staff received this question following the publicity surrounding the recent death of the first man to walk on the moon. Mr. Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio, on August 5, 1930.

Searching online for information about the memorial, we found that it is located at 2487 Parkman Rd., Warren, Ohio.  6-year old Neil Armstrong took his first ride in an airplane at this location of the old Warren Airways landing strip. According to the Youngstown Vindicator 8/30/2012 article, Memorial Celebration Honors Neil Armstrong by Ed Runyon, “Armstrong and his father were on their way from their home in Champion to a church service in Warren when they passed the air strip, saw the Ford Tri-Motor, and arranged a ride. ‘His dad got deathly sick, and Neil said he had the time of his life,’ Mathey said. ‘And [Armstrong] said that was something he could do that his father couldn’t do.’”  The Business Journal 8/30/2012 article, Memorial Program Commemorates Neil Armstrong by George Nelson, states the replica of the lunar module is “nearly 13 feet tall and 12 feet wide half the scale of the Apollo 11 lander [and] was erected to commemorate” his July 1936 first flight.

More interesting information about Neil Armstrong can be found in: First Man:the Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen; the 8/25/2012 New York Times article, Neil Armstrong, First Man on the Moon, Dies at 82 by John Noble Wilford; www.nasa.gov and www.biography.com.