A Victorian Scrapbook of Newspaper Articles by George Burgess (1829-1905)
A Victorian Scrapbook by George Burgess
The scrapbook of over 500 Victorian newspaper articles collected by George Burgess during his working life between the 1840s and 1900s are mostly undated from British and American newspapers which he collected from when he was America completing his apprenticeship in stonemasonry. When he ran out of space in his Victorian Scrapbook he stuck the newer newspaper articles over the older ones; a few have come adrift over time and most of the newspaper cuttings have deteriorated with age.

In the early 19th century newspapers was a novelty, but with the rapid transformation of society and culture driven by the ever increasing progress in technology, science and medicine, and the emergence of printing for the masses making daily newspapers feasible, the influence the news print had on people and society was profound; and it was not long before the great authors, politicians and others used the news print as a media to promote their own works.
A 19th Century Scrapbook
19th Century American and British Newspaper Articles Saved By George Burgess in His Scrapbook
The Complete Copy of this Victorian scrapbook (Victorian Newspapers) can be viewed on Nathanville (my genealogy website).
The Victorian Scrapbook is notable as it gives insight into George Burgess as a person and shows what his interests were.
These Victorian era newspaper articles saved by him in his Victorian Scrapbook cover the following subjects:
- Family
- Health
- Education
- Humour
- Poetry
- Politics
- History
- Religion
- Science
- Nature
- Temperance, and
- Victorian Culture (Society)
Sample Article from the Scrapbook
Phrenology Head Inkwell

A centre piece to break the ice and get your guests talking next time you invite them around for a few drinks. Why not buy the book too (or DVD) and then you will really have something a little unusual to talk about.
Alternatively, just a nice bit of art to take the pride of place and show off on the top of your display cabinet.
Who Was George Burgess?
Phrenologist
George Burgess was a phrenologist by profession. He was born into Victorian society and he loved reading and writing.
When he was young, and before settling down to married life in Bristol (his birth place) he visited America three times, which is where he developed his views on life and learned the art of phrenology. Not only did he compile his own scrapbook but he also wrote his own diary, poems, his religious thoughts and at least two books on Phrenology.
In his diary he wrote about his life and his family; his children, his parents and his grandfather, John Willis (a farmer at `The Batch', Hanham, near Bristol).
Learn About Phrenology

Learn more about this 19th century art (science) from DVD, and then impress your guests with your knowledge at your next BBQ; or watch it with them on a cold winter's evening when socialising with a buffet and a few drinks.
Scrapbook Samples of Early 19th Century British and American Newspapers Articles
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeThe Extended Family of George Burgess
In his diary George Burgess wrote his family history and family tree back to his grandfather. On my genealogy website not only have I transcribed his diary and most of his writings but I have also expanded upon his good works in a comprehensive genealogy section which now contains thousands of related people in an extended family.
In this article I’ve included selected extracts of articles from my website on:-
- 'Mothers Last Words' by Mary Sewell (1797-1884), a touching story cherished by George Burgess
- `The Stickler Roots' and Thomas Arthur VC, one of his daughters (Maud Lilley Burgess) married into the Stickler family and Thomas Arthur VC become her grandfather-in-law.
To read the full articles and see more on genealogy use the link below to my website.
- Nathanville Genealogy
Genealogy and Victorian Culture. Family Research, mostly in South West England, with 10,000 family names in a free online comprehensive interactive family history tree database. Also wealth of information on the Victorian Culture.
Mothers Last Words By Mary Sewell (1797 - 1884)
George Burgess loved reading and one of the booklets he cherished and kept, and which has since been passed down through the generations is Mother's Last Words by Mary Sewell.
Mary Sewell, the mother of Anna Sewell (the author of `Black Beauty') was born into the Quaker faith in 1797, and lived at the Blue Lodge, Wick from 1858 to 1864. She had a great love of poetry and wrote `Mother's Last Words' (which sold millions of copies throughout the world) while living at Wick, near Bristol. George Burgess, himself a great lover of poetry spent his earlier years reading and writing down that which appealed to him, including `Mother's Last Word' which he copied word for word into an exercise book. The booklet reproduced on Nathanville is a copy of that original booklet which George Burgess bought for his enjoyment.
The Stickler Roots
Pvlcrecerce to Brigstowe
Maud Lilley Burgess (a daughter of George Burgess) joined the Stickler family when in 1906 she married Albert Thomas Arthur Stickler (grandson of Thomas Arthur VC).
On Nathanville read the full story of the Pucklechurch Stickler's; the history of the Stickler family from Thomas Stickler and Jane Mealing in the 18th Century to their descendants around the world. In this journey follow the lives of:-
- The Joint & Richard families as they join the Sticklers
- The Stickler families in America and Canada
- Thomas Arthur VC (real name Thomas McArthur), and
- The Australian Stickler branch as they join the Bang family from Denmark, and their Australian descendants.
Thomas Arthur VC
Gunner Thomas Arthur of Abbotsham, VC of Bideford
Thomas Arthur VC (aka Thomas McArthur) being the grandfather of Albert Thomas Arthur Stickler (son-in-law) of George Burgess.
It was June 1855 and twenty-year-old Gunner and Driver Thomas Arthur (aka Thomas McArthur), a member of the Royal Artillery Regiment, was with his artillery battery in an advanced position at Sebastopol. The British were attacking the Russians in an endeavour to capture a place known as the Quarries. Thomas Arthur was in charge of the ammunition magazine but his deeds went well beyond that call of duty. The fighting was intense and he realised that infantry of the 7th Fusiliers were short of ammunition. Despite having to cross open ground, under fire from the enemy, he made repeated runs carrying supplies of ammunition. Eleven days later, he volunteered to lead a party to spike the guns of the Russian artillery positioned at the Redan Fort, a fortified gun position. On top of this, there were numerous times when he left the trenches to bring in wounded officers and men. For this combination of heroic actions, he was awarded the Victoria Cross.
More about Thomas Arthur VC on the web
- Thomas Arthur on Wikipedia
Read about Thomas Arthur on Wikipedia. - Thomas Arthur at FirePower
Royal Artillery Historical Trust Royal Regiment of Artillery Museum - Map of Sevastopol
The environs of Sevastopol with the batteries & approaches 1854 - Thomas Arthur VC on FamilyPedia
Real name Thomas McArthur (1835-1902), Thomas and his family on FamilyPedia.
The Victorian Era
A Period in History of Political and Social Reforms and Technological Achievements
Many civilisations across the world saw great advancements during this time, but what do you think.
What do you think was most significant in making the Victorian era so great?
Florence Eveline Jenner (1901-1994)
Grand Daughter-in-law of George Burgess
This short video was made by me in honour of Florence Jenner 1901-1994. Florence Jenner married Edward William Burgess Baglin, the grandson of George Burgess (son of Gertrude Rosa Burgess). In this video (a slideshow of Florence Jenner) she speaks a little welsh before playing the accordion.
Your Comments
It's kind of hard to pick one thing out. There were important economic and social reforms, breakthroughs in science and technology, amazing authors, fantastic architecture etc. I think it's a fascinating era.
What a historical era with so much to be learned.
Interesting lens about history and Victorian Scrapbook
nice lens
Thanks for stopping to look at my lenses
The Victorian era seemed to hold the past and the future in one hand and so many choices were made to go with progress that we have all benefitted from and we can be grateful to George Burgess for saving some of this history for us all.
Great lens - thank you.
Excellent llens! Blessed.
This lens is excellent!!! I like the picture of old tattered newspaper, it was so interesting to read it.
I had fun reading this. Great lens!
great lens :)
Excellent information, thank you!
Very informative lens! Learned something new with your lens. Thanks for sharing. Rated you 5 stars and favorited!
Lots of fun reading this excellent little window into the Victorian era.
Great lens - you've been blessed by a squidoo angel :)
Great lens - you've been blessed by a squidoo angel :)
A great read
Blessed by a Squid Angel :)
Very good lens, thank you.
There is a growing amount of that sort of material on the (free) genealogy Wikia site, which has easy ways of linking pages about related subjects. Generally each individual or place is given a separate page, but there are many "family" pages too. Anyone can contribute.
Your readers can get a feel for it and some introductory links at http://www.squidoo.com/Genealogy-Wiki.
My vote goes for the development in the decorative arts, especially as it manifested itself in the design of the Victorian home and Victorian furniture. Thanks for the lens. I really like the story about Thomas Arthur. Antique Victorian Furniture
Hi,
Your lens is great. It is good to know more information about George Burgess. I like it.
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Hi George,
very nice lens found today, I felt great. Especially the managing housewife article is very fantastic, I never seen this type of lens.
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Great 5 star lens. I'll have to return when I can read more!
I learned a lot about George Burgess in your lens.
Well done. Rated 5 stars.
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Very, Very Nicely Laid Out! I Really Enjoyed My Visit To Your Lens.
Can't say about "most significant." You didn't list my favorite, Victorian architecture.
I am, abashadly, not deeply informed about matters Victorian, but my public television experiences and my love of literature suggest writing and literature and their authors because, thanks to the proliferation of the printing press, they influenced everything else. That then suggests technology ...
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