Adeline (Mower) Burdick

Today we are looking at a copy of an old newspaper article entitled "Death of Mrs. Burdick."  It is from the 7 September 1849 issue of the Kalamazoo Gazette, of Kalamazoo, Michigan.  So who is Mrs. Burdick you ask - well, she was Adeline Mower, my 2nd cousin 5 times removed.

Adeline was born 26 August 1802 in Woodstock, Vermont, to Henry and Hannah (Haile) Mower.  She was the first of four children born to this couple.  Henry traces his Mower roots back to Richard Mower of Lynn, Massachusetts, with three Samuels in between he and Richard.

On 24 May 1824, Adeline married General Justus Burdick, who was born in Canaan, New Hampshire, son of John and Phoebe (Freeman) Burdick Jr.  Now, how these two came to meet presents an interesting story.  Justus had arrived in Woodstock by 1814 and as a young man was singing in the Congregational Church choir and the local singing school.  He also became a member of the Vermont Militia in Woodstock. In that town, Justus Burdick's business associate was General Lyman Mower. Now, follow this closely.  Adeline was Lyman's step-daughter.  So here is how this comes about.  Upon the death of Henry Mower, Hannah Haile married his nephew, Lyman Mower.  Lyman was a son of Henry's half-brother (having different mothers), Samuel Mower.

About 1826, the Burdicks moved from Woodstock to Burlington, Vermont.  Here Justus was involved in the lumber business. He was also active in the development of the town itself, and in April 1831, he was one of the incorporators of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.  While living in Vermont, he had traveled to Detroit and Bronson, Michigan.  Liking the area, he purchased land there.  He prompted his brother to move to Michigan and oversee his interests in the area.  In 1832, they built "Kalamazoo House," a hotel.  In 1834, Justus became one of the four proprietors on Bronson.  In 1835, the Burdick family moved to Bronson, which had been renamed Kalamazoo.

Justus and Adeline Burdick had six children:

1. Henry Mower, b. 18 August 1825, d. 15 December 1825.
2. Eleanor Eliza, b. 28 January 1827, m. (1st) Burgess Goodridge, (2nd) James Walsh.
3. Edward Freeman, b. 1829, m. Harriet Goodridge.
4. George Rice, b. 1833, m. 1855 Caroline Curtis Chandler.
5. Justus Jr., b. 1836.
6. Francis Mower, b. 3 November 1842, d. abt 1867.

Now, back to the death of Mrs. Burdick.  The citizens of Kalamazoo were reportedly "greatly startled" by the news.  The evening before her death, Adeline had visited one of her neighbors, appearing in good health and spirits.  And upon going to bed that evening was animated.  The next morning however, she did not appear at breakfast.  So one of her children, aged 7, so presumably little Francis, was sent to wake her up.  He soon returned to the breakfast table crying, saying that his mother was dead.  The family laughed and told him she was not dead, but sleeping.  He stood by his story saying she always talked to him, but she didn't this morning and her eyes were open.  This gave the family and start and they ran to her room to find that she was indeed dead, having appeared to have passed peacefully.  The physicians pronounced that her death was caused by ossification of the heard. She had been a woman of "unusual powers of mind; and in her intercourse with society had won universal respect and esteem.  Her sudden exit has cast a gloom over our whole community that cannot soon be replaced."

So it was repeated sadness and grief for the children of this family.  Justus Burdick had just died on 6 July 1849, and now less than two months later, on 4 September 1849, Adeline (Mower) Burdick dies, at the young age of 47. They are buried in Mountain Home Cemetery, Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Our common ancestor couple is Samuel Mower and Elizabeth Sprague. My line of descent is: [1} Samuel Mower, [2] Jonathan Mower, [3] John Mower, [4] Martin Mower, [5] George Mower, [6] Frank Lester Mower, [7] George Richardson Mower, [8] Frank Edward Mower, [9] Dale Walter Mower.  Adeline's line of descent is: [1] Samuel Mower, [2] Samuel Mower, [3] Henry Mower, [4] Adeline (Mower) Burdick.

Selected Sources

• "Death of Mrs. Burdick," Kalamazoo Gazette, 7 September 1849, p. 2; image copy, Genealogy Bank (www.genealogybank.com : accessed 28 December 2011, Newspaper Archives.
• Mower, Lyman and Karen. The Ancestors and Descendants of Hannah (Haile) Mower. Durham, New Hampshire : Lyman and Karen Hoiriis Mower, 1997.