WILLIAM R. BLAIR -- 16th and 121st INFANTRYFATALLY INJURED ON THE STEPS OF THE NY CAPITOL --At 36 years old, William Blair enlisted in the 16th Infantry inPlattsburgh on August 30, 1862 . When he and other men from the ClintonCounty area met up with the regiment, they were licking their wounds inVirginia after having suffered about 250 casualties in the field betweenMay and the end of July -- 231 casualties at Gaines' Mill alone.The regiment went on to Antietam, Fredericksburg and after winterquarters, started 1863, with a the battles at Marye's Heights and SalemChurch just south of Fredericksburg. William was reported missing inaction and presumed dead at Salem Church on May 3rd.However, by June 11, he was found and transferred to the 121stInfantry who was fighting alongside them. As a 3-year man, William stillhad time to serve. He was promoted to corporal the next year while theregiment was near Petersburg and a few days later, on September 14,1864, was promoted to sergeant. More hard fighting followed in theShenandoah Valley and the 121st went on the Appomattox Campaign beforethey were mustered out in Fairfax, VA.After the war, William returned to the lumber business and eventuallyended up as a foreman in a lumber mill. In 1900 he was working in theAllen Brothers Paper Mill in Sandy Hill, and shortly after that, hishealth failed. He was admitted to the Old Soldiers' Home in Bath andreleased and returned again until September 1904.The Glens Falls Post Star carried this article at the bottom of page 8in the November 22, 1904, edition -- "William H. Blair, of Sandy Hill,for some time an inmate of the Soldiers' Home in Bath, NY, fell down aflight of stone stairs at the Albany Capitol yesterday and sustainedprobably fatal injuries. When picked up, he was unconscious and bleedingfrom the ears. Blair had been in Glens Falls to have his eyes tested andwas on his way back to Bath. He is 62 years old and a veteran of theCivil War. His wife and daughter reside at 25 Smith Street in SandyHill. "The November 23rd edition reported his death in Albany and thathis daughter had gone to collect his body to bring it back to SandyHill. He was buried in the Moss Street Cemetery in Hudson Falls and hiswife joined him there in 1933.
