Parents, Spouses, and Children
1. The Parents
When one encounters the core generation of seven Burleigh siblings, all of whom are deeply committed to anti-slavery and reform causes, it is natural to ask how their upbringing might have contributed to this outcome. In this case, while we have almost no written materials from the parents, Rinaldo and Lydia, we do have information about their dedication to equality and to education. Their lives demonstrate perseverence through challenges. While Lydia Bradford Burleigh's line of descent from the famed William Bradford of the Mayflower was a point of family pride, they understood their lineage as a responsibility to continue improving the world, not a cause for gloating or hubris.
No portrait of Lydia Bradford Burleigh has been discovered yet. But the obituary to her in The Liberator stands as a most touching and informative monument to her life.
2. The Spouses of the Core Generation
Each of the siblings in the core generation married, and most of those marriages extended the family connections to Abolition, Temperance, and other reform movements. Four of the wives are highlighted here: Gertrude Kimber Burleigh, Celia Burleigh, Margaret Jones Burleigh, and Ruth Burgess Burleigh. Spouses not included here are incorporated within the account written about their spouses - John Ames with Frances Mary Burleigh; Evelina Moore with John Oscar Burleigh; Harriet Frink with William Henry Burleigh; Elizabeth Morse Child with Lucien Rinaldo Burleigh.
3. Outstanding Children of the Core Generation
Five of the Burleigh brothers had children, and of these, three sons achieved renown in the world of the arts, enough so that their achievements are better documented than those of their parents! These three are Charles Calistus Burleigh, Jr., Sydney Richmond Burleigh, and L.R. Burleigh (Lucian Burleigh Jr.). None of them were particularly engaged with social issues, although Sydney did some fine graphics work in relation to World War I. Other notable progeny include:
a. Charles Hartwell Burleigh, son of John and Evelina, became a leading patent lawyer in Worcester, Massachusetts. He fought for the Union in the Civil War, from 1862 to 1865. He donated materials from his own practice, and some of his father's book collection, to the American Antiquarian Society.
b. Edward Davis Burleigh, eldest son of Charles Calistus and Gertrude, remained involved with reform causes, as did his wife Florence Aldrich Burleigh. They supported Henry George's Single-Tax proposal, stayed in touch with the children of William Lloyd Garrison, and there is even a record of Edward studying Esperanto.
