Biographical Sketch of Thomas Burgess, Jefferson County, Missouri

>From "History of Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, Crawford and 
Gasconade Counties", Biographical Appendix, Goodspeed Publishing 
Company, 1888.

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Thomas Burgess, a retired farmer of Sulphur Springs, was born three and
a half miles west of there, on Grand Glaize Creek, in 1824, and is the
third of nine children born to Judge Sanders and Elizabeth (Stewart)
Burgess.  The father was born in Georgia, in 1792, and when but a small
boy removed with his parents, Thomas and Nancy Burgess, to near Nash-
ville, Tenn.  Here Thomas Burgess died.  He was a soldier in the early
Indian Wars, and his ancestors were among some of the most prominent
English families who came to America in Colonial times.  The father of
Thomas, Jr. came to Missouri about 1811, and spent about two years min-
ing lead in Washington County.  He then returned to Tennessee with his
ore, which he disposed of to Gen. Jackson and his troops, whom he met
near Nashville, Tenn., on their way to fight the British at New Orleans.
In 1813, Sanders Burgess, in company with his mother, three brothers 
and two sisters, again came to Missouri, and settled in Jefferson Coun-
ty, where the mother died in 1845, and was interred in the old family
burying place, which was formerly a part of the old homestead on Grand
Glaize Creek.  Sanders then returned to the lead mines in Washington
County, where he spent several years.  He then came to Jefferson, and
for several years was assisting Col. Bryant in his distillery, on Sandy
Creek.  While there, and in 1818, he was married, and soon after settl-
ed about three and a half miles above the mouth of the creek, where
Sulphur Springs now stands, and was largely engaged in the wood trade.
He owned an old Spanish grant of land of about 1,500 acres and 2,000
acres in the vicinity of Sulphur Springs.  Mr. Burgess was well known
throughout Jefferson County as a man of integrity and honor, and was
for some years one of the county judges of Jefferson County.  He reared
a large family of children, who inherited many of his noblest charac-
teristics, for which he was so much esteemed.  He died June 3, 1855.
The mother of our subject was born in Jefferson County about 1799, and
died in 1848.  Both were for many years faithful and consistent members
of the Baptist Church.  Mrs. Burgess was a daughter of Capt. John Stew-
art, who was of Scotch-Irish descent, and who served through the Revo-
lutionary War under Gen. Washington, and was one of the very early
pioneers and well known citizens of Jefferson County.  Mr. and Mrs.
Burgess furnished one son for the Union army.  He was in Col. Thomas C.
Fletcher's regiment, but soon after the fall of Vicksburg, in which he
participated, was taken sick, returned home, and January 22, 1864 was
buried with the honors of war.  Thomas was reared at home, with very
limited educational advantages, and his first move after leaving the
parental roof was to engage in the wood trade on Island No. 8.  In 1854
he married Miss Caroline E. Kennerly, a native of Tennessee, and the
daughter of Thomas J. Kennerly, who was formerly of Tennessee, but at
that time was living in St. Louis.  Seven children were born to Mr. 
Burgess' uinion, three of whom are living: Mary E., widow of Peter Kirk;
Lillie, wife of Dr. W. W. Hull; and Strother, which is a family name in
honor of Gen. Strother, who figured prominently in the early days of
Tennessee, and who was a relative of Mrs. Burgess' people.  The same
year of his marriage Mr. Burgess built the house at Sulphur Springs, 
and in this he has ever since lived.  He has made farming his chief
occupation through life, and is an honest, industrious citizen.  Al-
though not a member of any church he is a liberal supporter of this and
all other worthy enterprises.  He is politically a Union Democrat, and
voted to sustain the Union during the war.  The family is well known
and esteemed throughout the county.  Mrs. Burgess was a member of the
Baptist Church, and died February 28, 1888, after a long illness.


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