DR. OSWELL E. BURT

The following bio was taken from page 135 of the book entitled "Rusk County History" compiled and edited and used with permission of the Rusk County Historical Commission.

Transcribed by Shirley Koym

Submitted by Gloria Briley Mayfield, Rusk County TX Coordinator

The Burt family name in America is older than the nation itself, and the early history of our republic is filled with the names of many Burts who contributed to its beginning. There were soldiers, doctors, lawyers, surveyors, state and national legislators, governor, inventor, planters, and others who played a vital part in the forming of our nation.

One of our first Burts to come to this country was Richard Burt. It was believed that he came to America in the company under the command of Captain Philip Moody. One of his grandsons was Matthew Burt.

Matthew Burt was born in Virginia about 1720. His father Moody Burt, the son of Richard. Matthew married Ann Harwood, and they had eighteen children, raising fifteen to adulthood. Of their twelve sons, there were seven who fought in the Revolutionary War.

One of these seven was Francis Burt, who was born in Dinwiddie County, Virginia on December 15, 1779. After the war he, his father, mother, and brothers moved to Edgefield District, South Carolina. The Edgefield County courthouse is filled with the wills, deeds, and other transactions recorded by the large family while they lived in this district. Francis Burt married Catherine Miles, who was the daughter of Henrietta and Aquilla Miles of Beaufort District, South Carolina. Francis Burt served in the South Carolina Senate and the House of Representatives from Edgefield District. He and Catherine had ten children, two of whom died young. About 1820, he moved to Pendleton District where he served as Commissioner of Public Libraries, Commissioner of Public Buildings, and Judge of Quorom. He and his family lived on a large plantation on Eighteen Mile Creek. He was also a member of the Baptist Church. At his death in 1833, according to his will, his plantation and twenty-six slaves were divided among his children.

Francis Burt had five sons to live to adulthood. Three of them were doctors, and two were lawyers. Armistead Burt practiced law in Abbeville, South Carolina, and was elected to Congress in 1843 and served until 1853. He was called a "Calhoun Democrat" and married a niece of John C. Calhoun. He was a personal friend of President Jefferson Davis. Among his papers can be found a personal, handwritten note from the President, inviting Mr. And Mrs. Burt to dinner.

Francis retired from Congress in 1853, came back to South Carolina and practiced law until his death in 1883. His beautiful home has been restored in Abbeville and is lived in by one of his nieces, Mrs. Mary Davis, a granddaughter of his sister, Eliza Burt. It was in this house that the last Cabinet meeting of the Confederacy was held. Mrs. Davis was married to Dr. T. L. Davis, now deceased. He was a prominent doctor in Chattanooga, Tennessee where they lived until his death. She then returned to the Burt home and has maintained it until today; she has deeded it, at her death to the National Historical Foundation. She is a most charming and interesting person. Now in her nineties, she has a keen mind and retains her charming personality and memory. For several years, we have had the great privilege of visiting her at the Burt Mansion.

Francis Burt, Jr. was the other son who studied law. He served in Washington as the Third Auditor of the Treasury, and in 1854 was appointed the first Territorial Governor of Nebraska by President Franklin Pierce. He died shortly after taking office and is buried in Pendleton, South Carolina.

The other three sons studied medicine, and all three moved to Alabama in the 1830’s. Dr. Matthew Burt practiced medicine in Jacksonville, Alabama, where he died in 1829. Dr. Erasmus Burt Practiced in Alabama, and it is thought that he moved on to Mississippi and was later killed while serving in the Civil War.

Dr. Oswell E. Burt, who was born in 1800, studied medicine in Pendleton. He married Nancy Raiford there about 1823 and moved to Alabama, where he and Nancy had several children. While there, he founded the town of Alexandria. The Baptist Church he attended is still there today. Nancy died in the 1840’s, and Dr. Burt married Martha Griffin. In 1850, Dr. Burt, his new wife, her father, David Griffin, several of his children, and others left Alabama for Texas. Some of Dr. Burt’s descendants still live in Alabama. It has been our pleasure to meet and visit with one of his descendants, Mrs. Harriet Blover Watson of Anniston, Alabama.

Upon his arrival in Texas, Dr. Oswell Burt settled in the community of Millville, which was one of the largest towns in Rusk County at that time. He farmed and practiced medicine there until his death in 1879. He and Martha reared eight children after they came to Texas. Martha Burt lived until 1898 and, at one time, served as Postmistress at Motley. Her father, David Griffin, also served as Postmaster at Millville, as did two of Dr. Burt’s sons, T. H. and Dr. Matt Burt.

The children of Dr. Oswell E. Burt and Martha Burt were: Mrs. Gus (Burt) Baughman, Mrs. Kate (Burt) Spharler, Dr. Matthews Armstead A. Burt, Mrs. Ella (Burt) Young, and Mrs. Julia Ann (Burt) Standard. Two of their children died in infancy. Many descendants of Dr. Burt and Martha Burt, through these children, reside in Rusk County today.

Dr. Matthew Armstead Burt was born in Millville on December 20, 1857. He studied medicine in Memphis, Tennessee and practiced in several communities in Rusk County, including Attoyac, Chalk Hill, and Millville. He married Amanda Louella Rosaline Craig on December 15, 1891. To this union were born eight children as follows: Norma (Burt) Burton, Oswell Fletcher Burt, Magnolia (Dickie) Burt, Robert Milner Burt, Mary (Burt) Burton, Rosalie (Burt) Ballenger, James Craig Burt, and Annie Laura (Burt) Meyer. All of these children with the exception of Mrs. Norma Burt Burton, who died in 1976, are yet living, and all but three live in East Texas.

My family and I are extremely grateful for the fruitful lives our forefathers and the fine Christian heritage that has been handed down to us.

Submitted by Jimmy G. Burt, son of O. F. and Ellie Mae Burns Burt