AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED BY GEORGE BURGESS, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF MAINE. by Burgess, George. (1809-1866). The first Episcopal bishop of Maine and rector of the church in Gardiner, Maine - 1860.

Gardiner, ME: April 5, 1860.. 1860.. Very good. - Two paragraphs penned in black ink & filling one side of a sheet of cream paper, approximately 8 inches high by 5 inches wide. Signed "Affectionately yours, / George Burgess". There is some very light creasing to the paper. There is a small piece out of the top left corner with surface tears & glue marks to all 4 corners of the verso where the letter has been removed from an album. Folded twice for mailing. Very good. <p>Burgess writes to a Mr. Slattery: "I have heard nothing from London. If you find a disposition to invite Mr. Southgate and he is willing to come, I have no objection, and indeed should be glad of the arrangement, as Mrs. Miller or Mrs. Howard might go to [----] in the summer...."<p>Horatio Southgate [1812-1894] was a native of Maine who became a member of the American Episcopal Church in 1834 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1839. George Burgess [1809-1866] was the first Episcopal bishop of Maine. He was born in Providence, Rhode Island and was ordained to the priesthood in 1834, becoming rector of Christ Church in Hartford, Connecticut. He was elected first bishop of Maine in 1847. On moving to Maine he became rector of the church in Gardiner, a position he retained until his death in 1866.