October 07

MEMORIAL TO...

Alexander Oscar Burford, Jr. 1858-1929

Alexander was my great-grandfather. His first wife was Helen Virginia Lockard. They had three children: Raymond, Edith, and Hazel.

Helen Virginia died of typhoid fever while her children were still young.

Alexander's second wife was my great-grandmother Lora Gibson. Besides the three children from his first marriage, Alexander and Lora had ten children: Deb, Helen, Ishmael, George, Killough, Bernice, Lester (my grandfather), Neil, Juanita, and Judy.

Photo Lora and Alexander Burford with their first 5 children: Deb, Helen, Ishmael, George, and Killough. (I have several copies of this picture, and it is labeled differently on some copies. The boys on either side of Helen are Deb and Ishmael, but I'm not sure which is which.)

Ishmael Burford died as a young boy as a result of surgery (amputation) on a broken leg that had become gangrenous. Killough died at age 35 from accidental asphyxiation from an unvented gas heater. The rest of the Burford children grew to adulthood and old age. 

Photo: George, Lester, Neil 1956

Photo Juanita, Helen, Judy, with their mother Lora (this is a photo of a photo, that's why it's a little bit distorted)

Photo: Front - Raymond and Edith, Back - Juanita, Juanita's son Jim, and Deb's wife Florence

One last group photo - 

The relative who sent us this picture didn't know for sure, but thought the man on the far left might be Alexander Burford. It does look like him (those ears). This picture was taken in 1946. The man on the far right is Raymond Minter Burford, Alex's firstborn.