Person:John Burge (21)

John Burge was born in Devon, possibly at Bampton. He was a baker and married twice, having ten children, at least four of whom immigrated to America with the family and survived to adulthood. According to a letter written by the nephew of his second wife in 1853: "Dear Aunt Your Sister Mary Is Gone to Texese in America And Shee is Married Shee have Been Gone a Boutt 4 years And Shee Married A Man By the Name of John Burge. And he is A Baker By Trade And When She Was Married hee had 6 Children And Shee have had 4 Children By him Wen Shee Went Away And the Youngest Was About 3 years of Age When Shee Went Away. Your Sister Mary have been Married About 8 years." In fact, the family immigrated first to Kenosha, Wisconsin and later to Washington, Ohio, as demonstrated by census records in both the UK and the US.

By the 1841 census, John Burge, 40, was living with his wife Mary, 35, and six children in Bampton, Devon at "Back Hall" or "Back Hull". The children are listed, with ages, as: Harriet, 12; Ann, 7; Henry, 5; Edwin, 1; and Alfred, 1. In the household is also Ann Frost, 50, nurse. Mary could be either his first wife or his second, but given that he was described as having six children with his first wife, it seems slightly more likely that the Mary on the 1841 census is the first, or, if the second, they must have been very recently married and she is not the mother of the six children. For everyone in the household, the column "whether born in same county" is set to yes. His second wife, Mary Williams, was born in Raddington, which, while only about 2.7 kilometers away from Bampton, is in Somerset.

The 1850 US census finds the family in Kenosha, Wisconsin. John Burge, baker, is 56 and born in England. Mary Burge is 46 and also born in England. The children listed are Henry (15), Edwin (13), Isabella (9) and Emma (4), all born in England. Harriet and Ann would have been old enough to have married and left the household and may not have even gone to America. It seems likely that Alfred, who would have been about 10, had died. The names of Mary Williams Burge's other two children are not known and it also seems likely that they died shortly after arriving in America.

By 1860 they had moved 370 kilometers west and slightly south to Washington, Lucas, Ohio, near Toledo, where they would stay. John "Birge" is now a farmer, 68 years old, born in England with 760 dollars worth of real-estate and a personal estate worth 100 dollars. Mary is 58 and the children are: Edwin (22), Isabel (18), Emma (14) all born in England.

The 1870 census lists John Burge, aged 80 with real-estate worth 1000 dollars and personal estate worth 100. Mary's age is given as 68 and she "keeps house" and Emma is "at home" aged 24, all born England.

The 1880 census lists John's age as 88, Mary's as 79, and Emma's as 33. The 1890 US census has not survived but neither John or Mary are on the 1900 census and Emma is living with her brother-in-law Ira Haughton, and his children, his wife Isabella, Emma's older sister, having passed away.

1. ↑ England. 1841 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.).

   Age: 40.