A Day at Historic-Memphis.com

"...one thing leads to another "  

Maureen went into over-drive.  Within minutes she knew that the owner of the house was George Dyer Burgess and his wife, Lily Early Burgess, and that Lily had written the postcard.  It was addressed to her mother, Mrs. Alexander R. Early.

George Dyer Burgess was in business with William H. Russe of Russe & Burgess Manufacturers and Exporters of Hardwood and Lumber.  He was Vice President of the Company.  William H. Russe was President.   George was born November 12, 1862 and died April 20, 1917, and was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery Mausoleum in Midtown.  Lily Early Burgess was born in 1866.  They had one son, John Early Burgess 1893-1962.

Team Member Gene Gill now knew about the Van Vleet postcard and the neighbors, George and Lily Burgess.  He wondered if their house might still exist across the street.  He quickly learned that a house located at 1225 Poplar,  was built in 1887 and was currently for sale.  He googled the address and there it was -  the old house from 1887.   Of course, it had been remodeled many times since that 1909 postcard was written, and it has currently been divided for businesses. 

If the Burgess house sells, this being Memphis, the building will probably be demolished.  And this little bit of history we have uncovered will  quietly be forgotten.  And this same process will begin all over again for us, anytime there's a new historic photo or any new discovery.   We seem to have this burning desire to trace it down until it's resolved or until it comes to a dead end - but we still don't give up.  This is not particularly remarkable unless you consider that none of our team lives in Memphis, nor near each other, and two of us have never met.   We're all just volunteers, who love Memphis. 

Click on small photos to see an enlargement

The Van Vleet Mansion was located at 1266 Poplar.  The family sold the land and the mansion to the city as a location for the proposed Tech High School.  The architects incorporated the portico and columns of the mansion into the design of the school.  They also retained the original walls and gates around the property.  The stone lions at the gates were later donated to the Memphis Zoo, where they remain today.

1225 Poplar Avenue was built in 1887 and currently has approximately 5,442 square feet with a lot size of 7,427 square feet.   The average price for similar homes for sale is $193,138 and the average sales price for similar sold homes is $190,255.  The average List Price for this area is $239,127.

The number and size of the Obits we have located indicates that George D. Burgess was a well-respected businessman in Memphis.  We have not, regrettably been able to locate a photo of Lily Early Burgess.  The double standard continues to exist - it's simply harder to locate photos of married women - even when you know their maiden name.