The Middleton Family

George Burgess (1829-1905) who was born in Staple Hill, Bristol, England (above the railway tunnel) lived in America (Baltimore, Maryland and Philadelphia) between 1845 and 1857 while completing his apprenticeship as a stonemason, returning to Bristol, England three times to visit his ailing mother.

In 1845, at the age of 16, two years after he left school and while doing an apprenticeship in stonemasonry his brother-in-law, George Sperring, persuaded him to go to Baltimore, Maryland, America (a `Slave State') to continue their apprenticeship. George Sperring died out there shortly afterwards and was buried in Baltimore, but George Burgess continued with his apprenticeship finishing it in Philadelphia, America (a `Free State') bordering Maryland.

While in America he met many friend including Mrs Catherine Margaret Middleton, from Washington, born c1828. Her husband, Dick Middleton (Richard Middleton) was a Captain in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861-1865) and their daughter was Selina Middleton.

George returned to England three time to visit his ailing mother, the third and last time being 1857. In his diary he wrote that he never returned to America after that and ‘ever regretted it’. His mother died in 1860 and in 1861 he became a Phrenologist as practiced his profession in the shopping Arcades in Bristol, England for 40 years until his retirement in 1901.

To my dear friend Mrs C M Middleton, aged 66,
of Washington in the U.S.A.

THE DAYS GONE BYE

The days gone bye, will come no more -
Will come no more.
But coming days sweet joys will bring;
Like light upon the morning's wing,
To make thy soul rejoice and sing -
But days gone bye, will come no more -
Will come no more.

Until you reach the Glory-land -
The sunshine land -
Time - shall give thee joys anew;
Hope - thy path with flowers will strew;
Love - shall sing sweet songs for you;
Until you reach the Glory-land -
The sunshine land.

Then - days gone bye, need come no more -
Need come no more,
To that blessed shore.

George Burgess 1894

Richard Middleton's Military Record
Regiment Name 50 N.Y. Engineers
Side Union
Company M
Soldier's Rank_In Capt.
Soldier's Rank_Out Capt.
Film #551 Roll 96

There's also American records of Richard Middleton and wife Margaret applying for Civil War pensions but no further details available to me on this at this time.

The 1880 Census shows another Middleton family living in Washington who could be closely related, for example: -