Whiteside County IL Archives Biographies.....Burgess, Benjamin, Jr ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/il/ilfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Deb Haines http://www.rootsweb.com/~archreg/vols/00003.html#0000719 January 31, 2008, 12:41 am Author: Portrait/Bio Album, Whiteside County IL 1885 Benjamin Burgess, Jr., retired farmer, living on section 30, Genesee Township, was born July 3, 1809, in the town of Fort Ann, Washington Co., N. Y. He is the only son of Benjamin and Jerusha (Chase) Burgess, and, in the paternal line of descent, is of mixed Irish and English blood, while the mother's ancestors were English. They were farmers; and the mother died about 1844, in Cayuga Co., N. Y., when she had passed the age of 60 years. Benjamin Burgess, senior, came to Genesee Township and died at the house of his son. He has been dead some years, and was about 80 years of age at the time of his decease. The family settled in Cayuga County about 1819. That section of the Empire State was in a dense wilderness of original forest. Mr. Burgess was there reared, and before he separated from the parental household he formed a matrimonial alliance with Sarah A. Annable. She was born Jan. 23, 1809, in Saratoga Co., N. Y., and her parents, Prince and Ruth (Howland) Annable, were also natives of that State and were respectively of French and English descent. They were farmers and the families from which they came were for a long period of years identified with the history of the United States, having come here prior to the Revolution. Mrs. Burgess was eight years old when her father became a citizen of Cayuga County. There she grew to maturity and was married Dec. 17, 1831. Later, her parents came to Illinois and located in Jo Daviess County, where their lives terminated. Mr. and Mrs. Burgess located on 50 acres of land in the township of Fort Edward in Washington Co., N. Y., to which they afterward added 25 acres, and, after making important improvements, sold out to buy another farm containing 100 acres, which was all cultivated. This constituted the homestead until their removal to Illinois in 1841. They located on a claim on which a settlement had been made and which they purchased of its original claimant previous to the land's coming into market. Three years later Mr. Burgess sold his title and bought 80 acres on the section which has since been his field of operation. He has put his son in possession of 40 acres of the original purchase, and has bought 40 acres of timber, three-fourths of which still belongs to the estate. Mr. and Mrs. Burgess are the parents of three sons and two daughters: Caleb married Rosanna Colcord and they reside at Sterling, where the former is a mechanic; James married Lavina Switzer, and is a farmer in Jones Co., Iowa. Lucy married John Cutting, a farmer in Gage Co., Neb. William married Margaret Vest, and is engaged in farming in Tama Co., Iowa. Ruth was born, in the State of New York, which was the native State of her brothers and sister, and married James Siddles. His parents were Joseph and Jane (Courtright) Siddles, and he was born Sept. 25, 1827, in Sussex Co.. N. J. When he was six years of age his parents removed to Susquehanna Co., Pa., where he was brought up and educated. In 1854 they came to Whiteside County and settled at Sterling. The mother died within the year of their arrival there. Mr. and Mrs. Siddles have had three children,—Milan, who died Feb. 11,1872; Charles C, and Dora V. Mr. Burgess is a Republican and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Additional Comments: Portrait and Biographical Album of Whiteside County, Illinois, Containing Full- page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens of the County. Chicago: Chapman Brothers, 1885. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/il/whiteside/bios/burgess2051nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/ilfiles/ File size: 4.2 Kb