May 1913 - 100 Years Ago in Bovina, "That Thriving Town"

I will be starting a new monthly series on this blog – 100 Years Ago This Month in Bovina.  The source of this information comes from the Andes Recorder, which from about the late 1890s until it folded in the late 1930s, had a weekly Bovina column called "A Week With Bovina People."  Other area papers had such columns also, but not always weekly.  The Andes paper was consistent in publishing this column each week, likely because the publisher, Thomas W. Miller, had Bovina roots.

I’ll be presenting snippets of what the Bovina correspondent for the Andes Recorder was reporting  in the column, along with occasional small articles not included in the column but usually next to or under it.  The dates are the dates of the newspaper, which was published once a week on Fridays.  As much as possible, I have kept the spelling and capitalization as presented in the paper and have only made corrections when otherwise the context would not be understood.  When I know it, I also will provide in brackets [ ] further information on the persons or places mentioned.

One theme during the month of May 1913 seems to have been issues with the then state road that went through Bovina Center, now County Route 6. 

May 2, 1913

Alex Bryden sold his 266 acre farm which is located near Lake Delaware in this town to George N. Neupert, of Hartford, Connecticut, who has taken possession.  [The farm was on the now unused part of Tom Hoag Road near the Delhi Town line.] The sale includes tack and farm machinery.  Mr. Bryden has moved to a small place at East Delhi, or Fitch’s Bridge, which he purchased a year ago. 

The piece of state road from the Scott bridge to the Russell road is completed.  Last week the engineer was here and the contractor, according to instructions, is repairing the part of the road built last fall.  In some places the dirt must be scraped off and the road re-surfaced.  [This is County Route 6 from the McPherson place at the lower end of the hamlet to Russell Hill Road by Denison’s.]

May 9, 1913

At a meeting of the town board last Thursday it was voted to purchase a 45-foot iron bridge to cross the river at Douglas Davidson’s [now Behrer's] on the C.S. Gladstone road [now Bob Hall Road].  The present wooden structure, which is condemned, is 66 feet long.

Daniel McMullin has sold his farm on Pink street, known as the D. Lyle Thomson place, to August Lifgren, of New York city, and will give possession May 20.  The sale includes 29 head of cattle, three horses and farm machinery, and the price is $10,000. [This farm was later the Bill and Mary Inman farm and is now the Mollie Brannen farm.]

Bovina Resident Dead

John G. Russell, aged 83, passed away May 7

John G. Russell died at his home in Bovina Center, early Wednesday morning, May 7, aged 86 years.  Last week he suffered a shock and death resulted.  He was born at the Butt End and the greater part of his life was spent in that part of the town.  A few years ago he retired from farming and removed to the village.  He married Margaret George, who survives him with three daughters, Mrs. Wilson Scott, of Bovina, Mrs. Bert Thomson, and Mrs. Robert Doig, of Walton.  The funeral will be held Friday and burial made in the Covenanter cemetery at the Butt End, within a stone’s throw of where he was born.  [John Russell was the grandson of William Russell, an early settler of Bovina who came from Scotland.  He farmed on what is now the Monroe Farm on Mountain Brook for many years.]

May 16, 1913

Division Engineer Hoadley, County Superintendent Van Tassel, and Supervisors Dickson, Patterson and Johnson were here Tuesday and went over the State road. In numerous places the road has to be plowed up and put in over again.  It is estimated that it will require from one to two months to complete the road.

Post office Will be Discontinued

The post office at Lake Delaware will be discontinued May 31, and after that date patrons of the office will be served by the Andes-Delhi stage.  Mr. Mason who had been postmaster for a number of years resigned some time ago, and no one there could be found to take the job.

May 23, 1913

Emily Elliott has hired to teach the school in the Miller district.  [Emily Elliott later married Bill Burns. A number of her descendants still live in Bovina. The Miller district’s school house was on Miller Avenue on Bramley Mountain].

Thos C. Strangeway, trustee in the E.L. Coulter district has hired Beulah Armstrong as teacher [this district was around Russell Hill Road and Doig Hollow].

Miss Vera Davidson, a graduate of Cornell University, has been hired to teach the Center school next year.  [Vera later married Bill Storie and was the sister of Fletcher Davidson.]

For the month of April the Bovina Center Co-Operative Creamery paid its patrons 42 ¼ cents per pound for butter fat.

Last Thursday evening at the special school meeting in the Oliver district Peter Robson was elected trustee, and his hired Ethel Worden for teacher. [The Oliver district school house was located on East Bramley Mountain Road and is now owned by Joe Salvo.]

May 30, 1913

The state road contractor has moved part of his machinery to Bloomville, and some of his men have gone to the Treadwell-Franklin road.  Engineer Hoadley was here again Wednesday and went over the road, but what the decision was is not known.  Thru the village the top is already worn off the road.

Stories from Bovina's Cemeteries - What Ever Happened to Edward O'Connor?

One-hundred and fifty years ago this month, on May 4, 1863, Edward O'Connor, famous for his prominent role in the Anti-Rent War in the 1840s, died in Forestville (Sanilac County) Michigan.  Born in Bovina in 1819, he was one of the over 100 men arrested for the murder of Undersheriff Osman Steele in August 1845 at the farm of Moses Earle.  O'Connor, along with John Van Steenburg, was sentenced to hang for the murder.  Their sentences were commuted then not long after that O'Connor and Van Steenburg were pardoned.They received a hero's welcome on their return home.

Edward O'Connor with his three children (Mary, Fanny and in his lap, David).  Photo comes from A Free Soil-A Free People: The Anti-Rent War in Delaware County, New York by Dorothy Kubik.  Photo was provided to Dorothy by the VanBenschoten family

At the time of Edward’s arrest for the murder of Steele, he was 26 years old.  His sweetheart, Janet Scott, waited out his arrest, sentencing, imprisonment and release and on April 8, 1847, married him.  Edward and Janet continued to live in Bovina.  Their farm was where the Millard Russell farm is on Russell Hill.  O'Connor held several offices in Bovina during the 1840s and 50s, including Town Clerk, Clerk of Elections, Tax Collector and Highway Commissioner.  

Edward and Janet had three children, Mary, Fanny and Edward David.  Edward’s marriage to Janet was relatively brief, with Janet dying on May 4, 1858, not long after giving birth to her son.    On December 1, 1859, Edward married Fanny Brainard of Colchester, widow of John Brainard.   He moved to Colchester, probably right after his marriage to the home of his new wife.  Sometime around 1861 or 1862, his daughter Fanny died and was buried in Bovina. Around this same time, Edward left Downsville and moved to Michigan.  When he left Delaware County, his new wife and children did not go with him.

Why did Edward go to Michigan and under what circumstances?  There is evidence in the Bovina United Presbyterian Church Minutes that he was in considerable trouble.  He did not move away from Delaware County but ran away.  On December 16, 1861, at a regular meeting of the Session, it was reported that “...Mr. Edward O’Connor, has fled the county having been guilty of a breach of the 7th [adultery] and 8th [theft] Commandments and session agreed unanimously to suspend Mr. O’Connor until said reports can be investigated and further information obtained.”   On July 15, 1862, O’Connor was suspended from the church indefinitely based on the facts that “1. that said O’Connor has fled the county, 2. that he has been found guilty of fraud (by the civil authority), 3. That he is charged with a gross breach of the 7th commandment.” O'Connor was only in Michigan about a year and a half before his death, which happened exactly five years after the death of his first wife.  He appears to have started a family there, fathering at least one child before he passed away.  

We will never really understand all the issues that drove him to take this step. This was a man who was sentenced to death, went to prison, and lost his wife and at least one child within about 10 years.  Something may have just snapped.  Or maybe at some point he decided that his second marriage was a mistake. From 150 years away, we cannot judge O'Connor for the actions he took.  It is a sad ending to a relatively short but eventful life. 

This is the O'Connor family monument.  It has not worn well and is a challenge to decipher. 

Russell's General Store Fifty Years Ago and Beyond

Fifty years ago, in its May 2, 1963 issue, the Walton Reporter published the following article about Russell's Store entitled "Cecil Russell Nears 45th Year In Bovina Center General Store:

    Cecil H. Russell can look around and admit that he’s pretty familiar with his surroundings.
    Mr. Russell is now in his 44th year of running one of the few genuine general stores in the area.  It is located in a neat white building in the community of Bovina Center.
    “I bought the business from Andrew Doig recalls Mr. Russell.
    On Jan. 1, 1919, he began operation of Russell’s Store.  The business had previously been operated by Tom Hastings, who operated a feed business as well as the general store, and before Andrew Doig owned it, his brother Milton was the proprietor.

Grocery Business Changed

    Business has changed through the years, says Mr. Russell who notes that he sells everything from groceries to nuts and bolts, hardware items and dry goods.
    “Sugar used to come in nothing but 100 pound and 25 pound bags, and we had to weight it up,” he reminisced.
    “At the time I started in business shredded wheat and corn flakes were about the only cold cereals.  Now I carry about 20 brands and still don’t have them all.  Corn flakes are still the best seller.”
    The only powdered soaps 44 years ago were Fels Naptha and Kirkman’s.  A third brand he still carries is Gold Dust Twins.
    “Coffee came in beans, and we had to grind it by hand,” said Mr. Russell.
    In those early days, lard came in one pound prints, but shortening, called compound then, came in a tub.  There was no Crisco or Spry in those days, he noted.

The Penny Candy

    “I think we’re about the only store where you see many penny candies.  Today they’re about half the size of what they used to be.  So are the nickel candy bars.”
    Candy is dispensed from an old time case that catches the eye of the many city boarders spending vacations on farms in the area.
    In front of the store stand modern gasoline pumps, but Mr. Russell recalls that when he first started selling gasoline, he had a one-gallon hand pump on the curb.
    “We used to sell an awful lot of yardage goods, but very few are sold now compared to those days,” remarked Mr. Russell.
    Time has wrought other changes.  There are no more than three or four families in the community now that were there when he started in business.
    “No salesman that called on me when I started in is on the road now, and quite a few of the firms from whom I did buy are out of business.”

The Salesman Cometh.

    Three of his salesmen would time their visits so they would simultaneously be in the area together.  Hardware, grocery and candy salesmen would come in on the train to Walton where they hired the late cigar munching George Pierson to take them on a tour to Andes, Bovina and Delhi.
    Mule drawn wagons brought gasoline to Bovina Center from Delhi, while groceries were hauled from Delhi by the teamsters who drew feed for the Hastings feed concern.
    “For a time I didn’t handle bread because I was told that it would get stale.  Then I started buying bread from the Hoos bakery in Delhi.  They brought in 50 loaves three times a week, and now I get about 100 a day,” stated Mr. Russell.
    Cookies came in six and seven pound boxes, and there were no cakes or pies brought in for sale by commercial bakeries as there are today.

An Old Custom

    “In the days when I first started in business all the milk was brought to the creamery with horses.  Everybody stopped at the store for groceries afterwards.  Nowadays they can run to the store in the middle of the day because they have cars.”
    The store retains many of the fixtures that were there the day Mr. Russell unlocked the door.  The check-out counter is of alternate strips of birds-eye maple and cherry, pegged and glued together.  The safe is an original fixture and the McCaskey record file is a remnant of the old days. 
    “When I first came in here, there was an old chunk stove that just burned wood.  I bought another one with grates for coal.”
    It sits there majestically, and Mr. Russell admits it is older than he.  City youngsters have taken dads by hand, pointed at the stove and asked, “What’s that?”

Born on Farm

    Born and raised on a farm, Mr. Russell farmed it until he bought the store.
    His wife and daughter, Miss Marjorie Russell help in the store, his daughter joining him 20 years ago when business increased to the point where he needed extra help.
    Like most small community businessmen, Mr. Russell has been active in Bovina Center.  He was an elder in the Reformed Presbyterian church for many years before it closed and is now an elder in the United Presbyterian church.  He has been fire commissioner for several years. 
    Asked if he planned to stay in business 50 years, his answer was, “I don’t know.  A man keeps working as long as he’s able.”

The article included the image below (click on the image to see a larger view):

The bag holder above Cecil still exists in the collections of the Bovina Historical Society

Years Bring Little Change in the Town of Bovina

Seventy-five years ago, the Walton Reporter published a series of histories of local towns, written by Fred Doherty.  Here's the one that he wrote for Bovina under the title Years Bring Little Change in Town of Bovina (unfortunately, I do not have the precise date, just the year, 1938):

    Most appropriately named of all townships in this county is Bovina.  The name, derived from the Latin word bovinus, pertaining to cattle, was suggested by General Erastus Root, also credited with the naming of the village of Delhi. 
    As the name implies, Bovina, as during the early history of the town, is mainly dependent upon the production of milk.  In late years, another important industry has been developed, the production of cauliflower, cabbage and sprouts.  In accordance with other townships in the county Bovina rates among the leaders in the raising and marketing of cauliflower.
    However, regardless of the growth of the truck gardening industry, the township is still mainly dependent upon the milk industry for maintenance.  With the exception of the occupations named above, the locality has no other means of support.
    What is now included in the Town of Bovina, was a part of the towns of Delhi, Middletown and Stamford until it was set apart by an act going into effect February 25, 1820.  The first town elections were held the following March.
    One of the interesting features of the township was the early division into three trade centers, all of which are still in existence today.

Bovina Center Once Brushland

    Most important today, as it was a century ago, is Bovina Center where most of the stores and the lone creamery of the township are now located.  Originally the mallet was called Bovina Center, the name later being changed to Brushland in honor of the first settler, Alexander Brush, who migrated from Long Island.  The original settler is said to have owned about 400 acres, including the present site of the village.  On the property he erected the first grist mill ad his son-in-law, Cornelius Davis, is said to have constructed the first distillery. 
    As in the early days of the settlement, the church buildings and the largest school in the town are located in Bovina Center.  Other industries of 100 years ago located there included cooper shops, blacksmith shops and general stores.

First Inn at “The Hook”

    Another center of trade was called the Hook.  Located on the Delhi-Andes road in the extreme end of the township, the Hook at the present time consists of only a few residences.  In earlier years the first inn in the town was operated there by James Wetmore.  In 1803 a distillery was also operated there. 
    Still known by its name of a century ago is the Butt End.  According to history it is described as a “post hamlet in the northeastern part of the town.”  History also has it that the name was given by “group of people who lived farther down the river in the days when town meetings were shifted from one locality to another.”

Story of the “Butt End.”

    On one occasion it is said that Thomas Hamilton, who favored holding the next meeting in that section introduced a striking simile into his argument.  He claimed that the north settlement was the larger and alluded to the big ends of logs, with which all of the people were familiar.  In his argument he referred to the portion of the town as the “Butt End.”  Although his proposition was defeated, the name suggested by Mr. Hamilton still exists. 

Tunis Lake Camp

    According to historical data the lake, called a “muddy pond of a few acres” is the only monument to the memory of Teunis, an old Indian who once lived in that locality.  He is supposed to have been the last of his kind to live in that section and has the reputation of having issued friendly warnings to the settlers when malicious tribes were on the warpath.
    An interesting item is that a hundred years ago, as today, there was no liquor license in the township.  This is unusual in view of the fact that in the early days there were several distilleries located in the various parts of the town.  [Note:  this is not true.  There were liquor licenses issued from the town's founding until about 1870.]

Scotch Ancestry.

    A large part of the early population was of Scotch extraction.  And more in Bovina than in any other town in the county, is the noticeable preponderance of names which exist today in living memory of the early settlers.
    The white man’s knowledge of the territory which is now Bovina extends back over the period when Delaware county was first settled before the Revolutionary warm.  At that time, the residents of the town of Harpersfield, the first town in this county to be settled, knew that section as “over the mountain.”
    All parts of the county are steeped in tradition.  In Bovina the story is that there were lead mines known only to the Indians.  It is said that the old Indian who made his home on the shores of what is now Tunis Lake, would take his hammer and after a short absence return with pieces of mineral from which he made his bullets. 

Once Nine Distilleries

    In a town of settlers, for the most part of Scotch extraction it is not unusual that at one time the most important industry aside from dairying, was the distilling of liquors. It is said that the largest distillery was built by David Ballantine.  At that time there were at least eight others in the township.
    For a quarter century before the township was erected, the ashries were listed among the more important industries.  Wheat was also in(sic) important product during the early days.
    It is said that Scottish thrift and piety transmitted traits that did honor to the “old country.”  One writer has it that 100 years ago there was a Bible in every home and that love of country and love of God went hand in hand in the town of Bovina.
    One phase of the early existence of settlers in Bovina, which is reflected in present day life, is the absence of expansive postal facilities.  During the first 30 years of the settlement, advantages of that kind were definitely limited.  Today, in comparison with other towns in the county, Bovina does not have the most complete mail service desirable.  However, in comparison of the days when one member of the community went over the hills to Stamford once a month for the mail, the service is adequate. 

Education Problems

    Education today in the town of Bovina presents a problem.  Part of the students of high school age are transported to the Andes central school  Others go to Delaware Academy and Delhi central school.  Several of the one-room schoolhouses in the township have been closed and the pupils attend the more modern, two-room schoolhouse, maintained in Bovina Center.
    When first organized, the township contained more than 400 children of school age.  At that time the total expense for maintenance of schools for that number of students was $221.87, according to the report of the school commissioners.

A Gody Township [Note: I suspect they meant to say "Godly."]

    In common with the upbringing of the Scotch settlers of the township, the founding of churches was one of the first steps in conjunction with the settlement of the area.  At the present time, as during the early days, two of the three churches are located at Bovina Center.  The third, built by Miss Angelical Gerry, is located at Lake Delaware, near the Hook. 
    An interesting story which is a part of the growth of the United Presbyterian church in Bovina was told by the present pastor, Rev. Harvey McClellan. After a half century of growth, the Bovina church constructed a new edifice in 1849.  The old building was dismantled and given to the United Presbyterian congregation at Delancey. 
    The growth of the churches throughout the past century has kept pace with other developments in the township.  At the present time the residents are served by churches of three denominations, including the Reformed Presbyterian church, the United Presbyterian church, both at Bovina, and St. James Episcopal church at Lake Delaware. 
    Of the three churches, the one at Lake Delaware, erected by Miss Gerry several years ago in honor of the memory of her parents, is undoubtedly one of the outstanding edifices in this section.  Constructed of native stone, the chapel houses many priceless articles.
    And so we find the Bovina of today little changed from that of a century ago.  Residents of the town lead a similar existence, gaining their livelihood from the same practices employed by their forefathers. 

Postcards and the Bovina Historical Society Calendar for 2014

I am starting work on a Bovina History calendar for 2014, proceeds to benefit the Bovina Historical Society.  If things move along ok, I hope to have the calendar ready this summer, so you'll be prepared for the new year in good time.

The theme is going to be Bovina postcards.  I have some good postcard images, but am asking for your help in finding some others.  If you have a postcard with a Bovina scene on it and you aren't sure whether or not I've seen it, assume I haven't and get in touch with me.  Sometimes, I might have the image, but your card may be in better shape.  Though I'd like to see any Bovina postcards that are out there, for the calendar, our preference is black and white images. If you don't have a scanner, don't worry, I can arrange to come and scan the card myself or make whatever other arrangements to capture the image.

And below are several images for which I have low resolution scans only.  Some of these came off the Delaware County genealogy web site and were provided by the late Alan Davidson.  They are great images, but I need a higher resolution scan (at least 300 dpi) to make them work for a printed calendar.

Does anyone recognize where this is?

This is now called Silver Lake or Cole's Lake. It's right on Route 28 as you head towards Andes.

There are some very old Bovina postcards which, unfortunately, are of such poor quality that they will not blow up to 8 1/2 by 11. I do hope, however, to include some of these in a set of four on the inside pages of the calendar.  The card below, recently shared by Dan Finn on Facebook, is a wonderful view of Bovina Center that, unfortunately, is very blurry.  He scanned it at a good resolution, so the issue here is not the scanning.  The card is black and white but has been somewhat 'colorized' - basically, leaves and grass have been colored green!  If anyone has a version of this image that is clearer I'd love to see it. 

So start digging through those boxes of treasures and let me know if you have Postcards from Bovina.

Faces of Bovina - the McKenzie Sisters

In August 1972, sisters Janet and Elizabeth McKenzie had their passport pictures taken by Bob Wyer in Delhi.  These certainly were not the first such photos.  The sisters had extensive travel experience throughout their lives. While not life long residents of Bovina, they spent considerable time in the town.  I have many fond memories of these delightful sisters.

Janet and Elizabeth were the daughters of the Reverend Peter McKenzie (1869-1948) and his wife Elizabeth Gordon McKenzie (1874-1950).  They moved with their father several times as he progressed in his career as a minister.  Janet was born in 1898 in Auburn, New York.  Elizabeth was born in Palmyra, New York in six years later.  Janet and Elizabeth had a brother, Gordon, born in 1901 and a younger sister Margaret, born in 1906.  Their father was born in Hawick, Scotland and came to the United States in 1884.  Reverend McKenzie had several pastorates in New York, including Avoca, Naples, Utica, and Schenectady.  Around 1918, he and his family first became familiar with the Catskills, taking a vacation in New Kingston.  In 1925, the McKenzies settled in Stamford when the Reverend became the pastor at the Presbyterian Church there. 

Janet and Elizabeth both became teachers in New Jersey, living in Hackensack and later Newark.  Their father and mother ended up living in Newark also, but they bought a vacation home in Bovina, the house across from Russell’s and now owned by Amy Burns.  Janet and Elizabeth inherited the house upon the death of their parents and spent many summers there in the 50s, 60s and 70s.  Their sister, Margaret, and her husband, Ed Coleman, lived kitty corner from Janet and Elizabeth in the house where Joe and Connie Dibble live now.

One attribute that Janet had that was memorable to me from an early age was that she had one leg shorter than the other - significantly shorter.  Janet had a special shoe to make up the difference.  She never seemed self conscious about it - it certainly never stopped her from her career or from her travels.  And she had a great sense of humor about it.

Sometime in the early 70s, when I was a teenager, I took a phone call from Janet - she was calling to ask my Dad to come down and look at her television (Dad did TV repair).  When I asked what the trouble was, she paused a bit then said that when the telephone rang the TV would turn on - and usually at very high volume!  I wondered if maybe she was nipping at the sherry or something, so I went down to see what she was talking about.  Sure enough, if the phone rang the television turned on or changed channels.  It turns out the problem was the remote control.  It was one of the first remote controlled televisions I ever saw.  In the early days, such remotes used a tone to turn on the TV and change the channels.  The telephone had just the right tone to mimic the remote.  The solution was to live with it and when out of the house, unplug the TV.  Both sisters found the whole situation quite amusing.

As noted earlier, Janet and Elizabeth traveled extensively.  Several records related to their travel were found on Ancestry.com.  Reverend McKenzie and his wife and daughters Janet and Elizabeth made a trip to England in 1934, returning home in August on the Majestic.  The Andes Recorder reported in its July 8, 1938 issue that "Rev. and Mrs. Peter McKenzie went to Newark, last Thursday to see their two daughters sail on a trip covering six weeks in Finland." [I'm assuming the daughters were Janet and Elizabeth, though it's possible one of the daughters instead was Margaret.]  In July 1941, Janet and Elizabeth traveled to Guatemala.  Janet and her father made a trip to Scotland in 1947.  In 1952, the sisters flew to Ireland.  Three years later, Janet went to England, returning on the Queen Elizabeth in April 1955.  I am sure there were many other trips not documented through Ancestry.com.  Later in life, I recalled them spending at least one winter in Costa Rica.

It has been 40 years since I took my first ever overseas trip - a week in England in April 1973.  For a graduation present, the sisters, knowing I had just been there, gave me an old travel book about England that I still treasure.  Their traveling has inspired me to make a number of subsequent trips.  Here's what they wrote inside that book:

Janet and Elizabeth made their last winter trip together in the winter of 1978, visiting friends in Mississippi.  When they came back to Bovina in the spring, Elizabeth was ill and passed away that summer.  Janet stayed in Bovina for a few years then settled in a retirement community in Florida to be near her brother Gordon.  Janet died in 1987 (on my birthday, as it so happens). 

Janet got one last joke in after her death.  My mother was working at the Bovina Post Office in 1987.  When she came in one day to work, Pat Parsons (now Pat Miele), the post master, pointed out something in the safe.  Mom found a large envelope addressed to Janet.  When Mom pointed out that Janet had just passed away, Pat explained that the envelope contained – Janet!  More precisely, Janet’s ashes.  She would have gotten a big chuckle out of it all.


Note:  This is one in a continuing series called "Faces of Bovina," using photographs of people from Bovina taken by Delhi photographer Bob Wyer.  Thanks to the Delaware County Historical Association for allowing the use of these images.

Please share your stories about Janet and Elizabeth in the comments section of this blog.

Stories from Bovina's Cemeteries - John Sinclair Burns

150 years ago today, on April 4, 1863, Sinclair Burns became Bovina's first fatality in the Civil War.   Born in Bovina on August 29, 1841, Sinclair was the son of John and Nancy Burns.  He enlisted on his 21st birthday to serve for three years in the 144th infantry, mustering into Company E on September 27, 1862 as a private.  The Town of Bovina paid him a bounty of $150 for enlisting.  At the time of his enlistment, he listed his occupation as farmer.  He had gray eyes, brown hair, and a fair complexion and was six feet in height.

This is the Muster Roll Abstract for Sinclair Burns, obtained through Ancestry.com and held by the New York State Archives.  The Muster Roll Abstracts were created in 1893, using existing military records.

There are no authenticated photographs of Sinclair Burns.  This photograph was in the Burns family collection and could be Sinclair.  Photograph courtesy of Jack Burns.

A little over six months after he was mustered in, Sinclair died of typhoid at the Fairfax Seminary Hospital in Virginia. His remains were sent back to Bovina for burial.  Sinclair was survived by his parents and a number of siblings.  Fourteen years later, his mother Nancy died and was buried near her son.  Sinclair's father, John, survived his son by 33 years, dying in 1896.  The last of his siblings to pass away appears to have been his younger brother Alexander.  Alex died in 1939, having survived his brother by 66 years.  It is through Alexander Burns that I am related to John Sinclair.  Alex's daughter Ella married my great grandfather, Sylvan LaFever.  So Sinclair is my great great great uncle (though my genealogy software notes him as my 2nd great grand uncle).