Neil Armstrong

Learn about the life and accomplishments of Neil Armstrong—the first man to walk on the moon—through the CAG-certified artifacts from the Armstrong Family Collection™. CAG was selected to certify the entire collection of thousands of items from Armstrong and his immediate family members. View the collection in the CAG Artifact Registry >

Early Life

Aug. 5, 1930

Neil Armstrong is born near Wapakoneta, Ohio. His childhood was similar to that of many others, as this crayon drawing from first grade attests. But even at an early age, he was fascinated with flying, and earned his student pilot’s certificate on his 16th birthday.

Early Life

1947

Armstrong achieves the rank of Eagle Scout. He will stay involved in Scouting later in life; in fact, he greeted Scouts while en route to the moon on Apollo 11. This bronze medal is from the 13th World Jamboree, which Armstrong attended with his oldest son Rick, in Japan in 1971.

Early Life

1949

Armstrong's college studies are interrupted when he was called up for service in the U.S. Navy. He served as a pilot during the Korean War. In September 1951, he was forced to eject from his plane after he hit an anti-aircraft cable and about 6-8 feet of its wing was shorn off.

Early Life

1955

Armstrong graduates from Purdue University, where he studied aeronautical engineering. The Apollo 11 astronauts were permitted to carry personal items with them on the journey to the moon; this Purdue flag was among the items Armstrong brought with him.

Test Pilot/Gemini Program

1960-1962

Armstrong’s career as test pilot culminates with his work with the North American X-15, a rocket-powered aircraft that traveled many times the speed of sound. He performed seven test flights, achieving a maximum speed of 3,989 mph during one and an altitude of 63 kilometers on another.

Test Pilot/Gemini Program

September 17, 1962

NASA announces the astronaut training group known as “the New Nine,” and Armstrong was one of the two civilians picked. All of the manned Gemini missions had at least one astronaut from this group.

Test Pilot/Gemini Program

March 16, 1966

Armstrong serves as the command pilot for Gemini 8, which performed the first docking of two spacecraft in orbit. This Fliteline medal, created for the astronauts, features the names of Armstrong and crewmate David Scott.

Test Pilot/Gemini Program

March 16-17, 1966

Gemini 8 nearly turns into a disaster and the mission is cut short early after the spacecraft started tumbling out of control. Before Armstrong expertly regained control, NASA had turned off the squawk box at his home, alarming his wife. Armstrong took this pin with him on the mission and later gave it to his wife.

Apollo 11

January 9, 1969

NASA announces the crew for the Apollo 11 mission: Armstrong as Mission Commander, Buzz Aldrin as Lunar Module Pilot and Michael Collins as Command Module Pilot. Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins signed hundreds of postal covers like these before the mission as a sort of life insurance for their families, in case they did not make it back.

Apollo 11

July 16, 1969

The Apollo 11 moon mission blasts off from Kennedy Space Center. On board are pieces from the Wright Flyer, the aircraft flown by the Wright Brothers near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The four brief flights on December 17, 1903 by the powered, heavier-than-air machine had touched off a new era in manned aviation.

Apollo 11

July 20, 1969

The Lunar Module Eagle touches down on the moon with Armstrong and Aldrin aboard. After stepping onto the surface and famously declaring the feat “one giant leap for mankind,” Armstrong took this picture of Aldrin.

Apollo 11

July 21, 1969

The US had won the Space Race, but in a reminder of how intense it had been, a Soviet spacecraft crashed to the surface of the moon while the Apollo 11 astronauts were still there. The unmanned Soviet mission had the goal of returning a surface sample.

Apollo 11

July 24, 1969

Apollo 11 returns to Earth, with splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. The date (as well as the launch and moon landing date) are engraved on the reverse of the Robbins Medals that were struck for the astronauts. The obverse shows an eagle landing on the lunar surface.

After Apollo 11

August 1969

The Apollo 11 astronauts complete three weeks of quarantine, a measure meant to ensure that they had not brought back anything harmful from the moon. This photo shows President Nixon with the astronauts while still in quarantine.

After Apollo 11

Fall 1969

Armstrong and his crewmates are celebrated with a global goodwill tour, whose first stop was in Mexico. Among the items in the Armstrong Family Collection™ are this 1969 gold medal from the National Bank of Mexico, which misspelled Armstrong’s name.

After Apollo 11

1971

Armstrong resigns from NASA and accepts a teaching position at the University of Cincinnati. This letter from Sen. Robert Taft Jr. of Ohio thanks Armstrong for his decision to teach in his home state, having decided against pursuing more prestigious opportunities elsewhere.

After Apollo 11

1980s

Armstrong pursues various business ventures after his teaching career. In 1986, at the request of President Reagan, he served his country again as vice chairman of the commission investigating the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.

After Apollo 11

Aug. 25, 2012

Neil Armstrong passes away at age 82. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden praised Armstrong, saying, “As long as there are history books, Neil Armstrong will be included in them.” Armstrong’s incredible life is recounted in “First Man,” a 2005 biography and a 2018 movie of the same name.

CAG was selected to certify the entire Armstrong Family Collection. View the collection in the CAG Artifact Registry >