William Blaikie Collection

William Blaikie was an important member of the Utica, NY, community and a business owner.  Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1822, Blaikie immigrated to the United States in the spring of 1842 at the age of twenty.  Following his arrival, he found employment unloading boats on the Erie Canal in Utica.  Soon after this, he left his position on the Canal and served as a founding member of the Utica Mining Company.  After a short time as a company agent in California during the Gold Rush, Blaikie returned to Utica and opened an apothecary (later Watford's Drug Company) at 202 Genesee Street.  He also undertook several humanitarian ventures, including his involvement in Utica's abolitionist movement, and a stance against cruelty to both animals and children.  In 1904, he organized the Utica branch of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, while serving as the President of the Savings Bank of Utica from 1895 to 1909.  Blaikie maintained his position as a prominent druggist in Utica throughout his life, serving as a founding member and the first treasurer of the New York State Pharmaceutical Association in May 1879.  Blaikie died in May 1910 at the age of 88.