WILLIAM and WILLIS STARKEY -- 16thINFANTRYSEPARATED AT GAINES' MILL - Two brothers, born 9 months and 10 daysapart, enlisted in the 16th Infantry on September 14, 1861, inPlattsburgh. They were William Lewis and Willis Luther Starkey, sons ofLuther Starkey and Melinda Roberts and were living in Saranac at thetime. Their Starkey ancestors had come to Massachusetts in the early1600s and had migrated westward. Their great grandfather, Enoch, was inthe Revolutionary War.They were assigned to Captain William Wallace Wood's Company K when theyjoined them in time for winter quarters near Fairfax Seminary, VA, nearthe capital. By the beginning of May 1862, the regiment had landed atthe head of the York Rivers and had participated in the Battle of WestPoint where they had 6 killed and action and 11 wounded. They keptmarching toward Richmond and by the 22nd, they were nearMechanicsville a few miles northeast of the city.On June 27th they participated in their bloodiest battle -- Gaines'Mill -- 41 killed, 17 mortally wounded, and 173 wounded who recovered.During this battle, William, the elder brother, was killed in action andwas buried on the field.Willis carried on through the next three of the Seven Days' Battles andthen the regiment turned northward to prepare for the Maryland Campaignin September. On September 14th, at Crampton's Gap on South Mountain,he was one of 37 wounded and was taken to hospital at Alexandria, VA. Hehad received a severe wound in his left thigh and was discharged fordisability on February 12, 1863. As soon as he got back to Saranac, hestarted receiving his Invalid's Pension.Like many young men, he moved West to seek his fortune. He marriedJoanna Hickenbottom in 1869 and they continued to make Fairfield, IA,their home until September 1907, when they moved to Denver, CO, and inthe spring of 1916 to a homestead near Douglas, WY, on the banks of theNorth Platte River. Willis died in October 1919 and was buried in theDouglas Park Cemetery. One year later, Joanna died and was buried besidehim.
