Richard Onderdonk Smith was born in Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York to Jacob Onderdonk Smith and Elizabeth Osborn on 25 Jun 1843. He was the second of five children, having an older brother John Henry and younger siblings Catherine Ann, Hiram Purdy, and Ellen Amelia.
At the age of 18, along with his elder brother John, Richard enlisted as a Union Volunteer in the Civil War for the 95th Regiment, New York Infantry on 1 Oct 1861. The Company sailed out from Haverstraw, New York on 14 Oct of that year. According to the Rockland County Journal, issued 26 Oct 1861, "Bright and early [the] citizens from near and from far poured forth to escort the Company to the boat. The streets were lined, the dock was crowded, the windows and doors were full. Haverstraw never saw such a sight before."
Richard's company took place in a series of battles throughout Pennsylvania and Virginia, and he was mustered out as a Private on 6 Nov 1864. He returned home to New York and married Margaret Conklin on 19 Jan 1867. Richard and Margaret has 4 children, Edmund Vanderbilt, Ellen Elizabeth, Curtis, and Elmer TenEyck. The family lived briefly in Harington, Bergen County, New Jersey before Curtis and Elmer were born, but Richard's employ as a brakeman on with the Erie Railroad soon took them to live in Port Jervis, Orange County, New York.
Tragically, Richard fell victim to a horrible train yard accident while on the job on 29 Jul 1876. The following is taken from Port Jervis' Evening Gazette issued the following Tuesday: "Between ten and eleven o'clock Saturday night, while Richard Smith, a brake man on extra 10, Eastern Division... was engaged in making a coupling, his foot slipped and he fell upon the track. The wheels of a freight car passed over the fleshy part of his leg, terribly lacerating the limb from the ankle. Smith was removed to his home in Carpenter's Point, and Dr. Hunt called to attend to his case." The paper went on to note that his injuries were "said to be of a serious nature," and Richard unfortunately died from "lockjaw" (aka tetanus) as a result of his injuries while at home just ten days after the accident (Tri-States Union newspaper, 11 Aug 1876).
Richard was buried in Nanuet, and his family moved back to the Rockland County area following his death. His wife would eventually remarry Alexander Dutcher Sr, a successful businessman in the Nyack area who was 29 years her senior.
At the age of 18, along with his elder brother John, Richard enlisted as a Union Volunteer in the Civil War for the 95th Regiment, New York Infantry on 1 Oct 1861. The Company sailed out from Haverstraw, New York on 14 Oct of that year. According to the Rockland County Journal, issued 26 Oct 1861, "Bright and early [the] citizens from near and from far poured forth to escort the Company to the boat. The streets were lined, the dock was crowded, the windows and doors were full. Haverstraw never saw such a sight before."
Richard's company took place in a series of battles throughout Pennsylvania and Virginia, and he was mustered out as a Private on 6 Nov 1864. He returned home to New York and married Margaret Conklin on 19 Jan 1867. Richard and Margaret has 4 children, Edmund Vanderbilt, Ellen Elizabeth, Curtis, and Elmer TenEyck. The family lived briefly in Harington, Bergen County, New Jersey before Curtis and Elmer were born, but Richard's employ as a brakeman on with the Erie Railroad soon took them to live in Port Jervis, Orange County, New York.
Tragically, Richard fell victim to a horrible train yard accident while on the job on 29 Jul 1876. The following is taken from Port Jervis' Evening Gazette issued the following Tuesday: "Between ten and eleven o'clock Saturday night, while Richard Smith, a brake man on extra 10, Eastern Division... was engaged in making a coupling, his foot slipped and he fell upon the track. The wheels of a freight car passed over the fleshy part of his leg, terribly lacerating the limb from the ankle. Smith was removed to his home in Carpenter's Point, and Dr. Hunt called to attend to his case." The paper went on to note that his injuries were "said to be of a serious nature," and Richard unfortunately died from "lockjaw" (aka tetanus) as a result of his injuries while at home just ten days after the accident (Tri-States Union newspaper, 11 Aug 1876).
Richard was buried in Nanuet, and his family moved back to the Rockland County area following his death. His wife would eventually remarry Alexander Dutcher Sr, a successful businessman in the Nyack area who was 29 years her senior.
Richard Onderdonk Smith was born in Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York to Jacob Onderdonk Smith and Elizabeth Osborn on 25 Jun 1843. He was the second of five children, having an older brother John Henry and younger siblings Catherine Ann, Hiram Purdy, and Ellen Amelia.
At the age of 18, along with his elder brother John, Richard enlisted as a Union Volunteer in the Civil War for the 95th Regiment, New York Infantry on 1 Oct 1861. The Company sailed out from Haverstraw, New York on 14 Oct of that year. According to the Rockland County Journal, issued 26 Oct 1861, "Bright and early [the] citizens from near and from far poured forth to escort the Company to the boat. The streets were lined, the dock was crowded, the windows and doors were full. Haverstraw never saw such a sight before."
Richard's company took place in a series of battles throughout Pennsylvania and Virginia, and he was mustered out as a Private on 6 Nov 1864. He returned home to New York and married Margaret Conklin on 19 Jan 1867. Richard and Margaret has 4 children, Edmund Vanderbilt, Ellen Elizabeth, Curtis, and Elmer TenEyck. The family lived briefly in Harington, Bergen County, New Jersey before Curtis and Elmer were born, but Richard's employ as a brakeman on with the Erie Railroad soon took them to live in Port Jervis, Orange County, New York.
Tragically, Richard fell victim to a horrible train yard accident while on the job on 29 Jul 1876. The following is taken from Port Jervis' Evening Gazette issued the following Tuesday: "Between ten and eleven o'clock Saturday night, while Richard Smith, a brake man on extra 10, Eastern Division... was engaged in making a coupling, his foot slipped and he fell upon the track. The wheels of a freight car passed over the fleshy part of his leg, terribly lacerating the limb from the ankle. Smith was removed to his home in Carpenter's Point, and Dr. Hunt called to attend to his case." The paper went on to note that his injuries were "said to be of a serious nature," and Richard unfortunately died from "lockjaw" (aka tetanus) as a result of his injuries while at home just ten days after the accident (Tri-States Union newspaper, 11 Aug 1876).
Richard was buried in Nanuet, and his family moved back to the Rockland County area following his death. His wife would eventually remarry Alexander Dutcher Sr, a successful businessman in the Nyack area who was 29 years her senior.
At the age of 18, along with his elder brother John, Richard enlisted as a Union Volunteer in the Civil War for the 95th Regiment, New York Infantry on 1 Oct 1861. The Company sailed out from Haverstraw, New York on 14 Oct of that year. According to the Rockland County Journal, issued 26 Oct 1861, "Bright and early [the] citizens from near and from far poured forth to escort the Company to the boat. The streets were lined, the dock was crowded, the windows and doors were full. Haverstraw never saw such a sight before."
Richard's company took place in a series of battles throughout Pennsylvania and Virginia, and he was mustered out as a Private on 6 Nov 1864. He returned home to New York and married Margaret Conklin on 19 Jan 1867. Richard and Margaret has 4 children, Edmund Vanderbilt, Ellen Elizabeth, Curtis, and Elmer TenEyck. The family lived briefly in Harington, Bergen County, New Jersey before Curtis and Elmer were born, but Richard's employ as a brakeman on with the Erie Railroad soon took them to live in Port Jervis, Orange County, New York.
Tragically, Richard fell victim to a horrible train yard accident while on the job on 29 Jul 1876. The following is taken from Port Jervis' Evening Gazette issued the following Tuesday: "Between ten and eleven o'clock Saturday night, while Richard Smith, a brake man on extra 10, Eastern Division... was engaged in making a coupling, his foot slipped and he fell upon the track. The wheels of a freight car passed over the fleshy part of his leg, terribly lacerating the limb from the ankle. Smith was removed to his home in Carpenter's Point, and Dr. Hunt called to attend to his case." The paper went on to note that his injuries were "said to be of a serious nature," and Richard unfortunately died from "lockjaw" (aka tetanus) as a result of his injuries while at home just ten days after the accident (Tri-States Union newspaper, 11 Aug 1876).
Richard was buried in Nanuet, and his family moved back to the Rockland County area following his death. His wife would eventually remarry Alexander Dutcher Sr, a successful businessman in the Nyack area who was 29 years her senior.
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