William Orlando Albright was born on June 6, 1841, in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, to William Albright and Catherine Garman. His father was a farmer who owned $560 of real estate and $75 of personal property by 1860. He grew up in West Beaver, Pennsylvania, and the family moved to Mottville, Michigan, in the 1850s.
He enlisted in the Union army on August 7, 1862, and he mustered in as a musician in Company G of the 74th Indiana Infantry later that day. Union officials transferred him to the Mississippi Marine Brigade on January 19, 1863. He remained devoted to the Union, and in March 1863, he sent his "respects to all my friends, that is, all true Union men." He warned that, "if you have any Copperheads there, just tell them that the Soldiers are coming Home some day, that's all." He denounced slavery as an "abominable Curse," arguing that the institution had hindered the South's "Agricultural, Moral [and] Religious" development. He hoped that "Slavery and the Rebellion [would] die together, and the Copperheads too, for all I care." He contracted mumps and “disease of testicles” in March 1863, and he was discharged for disability on August 13, 1863.
Albright settled in Indiana after leaving the army, and he married Alinda Wade on January 28, 1866. They had at least three children: Arthur, born around 1867; Estella, born around 1869; and John, born around 1879. Their daughter Estella died of “croup” in May 1870 when she was only nine months old. They lived in Indiana until the late 1860s, when they probably moved to Iowa. By 1870, they were living in Porter, Michigan, and Albright was working as a farmer.
The family moved to Riverton, Michigan, in the 1870s, and Albright earned a living as a schoolteacher. According to one writer, he taught in rural schools for thirteen years, and “as teacher and neighbor was universally beloved. He was one of those quiet unobtrusive lives full of sweet and kindly deeds that live long in the memories of his associates.”
He applied for a federal pension in February 1890 and eventually secured one. On March 20, 1895, he was admitted to a National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. According to his admission records, he was 5 feet, 10 inches tall, with dark hair and hazel eyes, and he was working as a laborer. He remained at the facility until September 26, 1896. By 1900, he was living in Pere Marquette, Michigan, and working as a “poultryman.” His wife died on September 6, 1900. By the early 1910s, he was living with his son Arthur in Boyne City, Michigan. He died there of “senility” on July 27, 1912.