JOHN WILLIAMS -- 118th INFANTRYLEG AMPUTATED TWICE - John Williams, who was living in Saranac, was twenty years old when he enlisted in the 118th Infantry on December 15, 1863. He was given a town bounty of \$150 to enlist.At the time, the regiment was in winter quarters at Newport News at the mouth of the James River. He and about 50 other men from the Plattsburgh area were sent to join them in preparation for the next year's events in the Petersburg/Richmond theater.By mid-March the 118th was fighting at Ballyhack in the Dismal Swamp about 40 miles south of Newport News and, by May 4, 1864, had marched back up to Yorktown, VA, to be put on transports for their journey up the James River. On May 6th they landed at Bermuda Hundred and proceeded to Port Walthal on the Appomattox River, then on to Chester Station. On May 10th they were at Swift Creek then Proctor's Creek on May 12th.On May 16th, John was shot in the right leg at Drewry's Bluff and was taken prisoner. About three weeks later, he was operated on in Libby Prison and most of his leg was removed. The Dannemora Town Clerk's Records say he was operated on by a "Rebel Surgeon,"By August 12th, John was paroled and taken to a Union hospital where, the Clerk's Records say, "His leg was amputated for the 2nd time." He ended up in Baxter U. S. General Hospital in Burlington, VT, from which he was discharged on May 26, 1865. He returned to Dannemora.Between 1870 and 1878, he was admitted five times to Veterans Hospitals in Milwaukee, WI, and Dayton, OH. The hospital record shows he was supporting himself as a bookkeeper or clerk, but no names of next of kin or place of residence is given.
