SANDS NILES PIKE -- 16th and 153rdINFANTRYPILGRIM ANCESTORS - Sands Niles Pike came from a family that emigratedfrom England in the mid-1600s. The ancestors that came to Massachusettswere James Pike and Naomi James, whose father, the Rev. Thomas James,was a dissident preacher with Pilgrim connections in Lincolnshire,England. The family stayed in Massachusetts through the Revolution andmigrated westward. Sands finally migrated from Alburgh, VT, where he wasborn about 1820, to the Ellenburg area.He enlisted in the 16th Infantry in May 1861 when he was about 40years old, and was assigned to Captain Frank Palmer's Company C. Theyleft for Washington at the end of June and stayed in northern Virginiaclose to Washington until the end of the year. The regiment was in theill-fated 1st Battle of Bull Run on July 21st. While they were inwinter quarters near Fairfax Seminary just across the river from thecapital, he was discharged for disability.In 1863, Sands again enlisted. He was assigned to Company H of the153rd Infantry and was with them until January 1865, when he wastransferred to the 5th Company of the 2nd Battalion of the VeteranReserve Corps.Sands returned to his wife, Rachel, who he had married in 1851, andeventually, their family grew to seven children. Most of his childrenmoved to New Hampshire to find work in the mills. He died in 1900 inMalone, NY. In 1909, Benjamin Pike brought his mother's remains back toEllenburgh from Unity, NH, where they were living.
