Captain Mills Olcott Burnham
1817-1886
Mills
O. Burnham was born on September 8, 1817 in Thetford, Orange County,
Vermont. He attended common schools in New York and served an
apprenticeship in the Watervliet Government Arsenal thus learning the trade of
gunsmith. At the age of 18, he married Mary McCuen, who was 16 at the
time. Mary had been born in northern Ireland and had immigrated with her
parents at a young age. His health was not good and he was advised to go
to the south to recover in 1837. After spending a winter in Florida, he
moved his wife and two children, Mills and Frances to the state in August of
1839. They lived in Jacksonville and Burnham became the first Sheriff
there.
By 1911 the Binney family was spending time in St. Lucie County. Edwin at one time owned 1,000 acres of citrus groves in the area, which was then called Fort Pierce Farms. Today we call the area Indrio, another of Alice's creations. Mr. Binney was an avid sportsman and fisherman. He was a community activist, and had a dramatic impact on our county, as well as in the community of his northern home in Old Greenwich, Connecticut.
Burnham's
land claim from the Armed Occupation Act was just north of Doctor
Holbrook's place in Ankona bluff. Next to the south was the Philip
Herman place. It was reported that Mills was the first man to raise
pineapples on his claim. Captain Burnham was considered a man of great
strength and he was admired and respected by the other settlers and by the
Indian population. Mrs. Burnham was said to be afraid of the Indians, and
when the captain was going away on business, he would warn the local Indians to
stay away, which they did.
Finding it
difficult here to provide for his family, he purchased a schooner, which he
called "The Josephine". He loaded her with green turtles, taking
care to tie their flippers and sailed them up to Charleston. Others did
not take such good care of the green turtles when shipping, many died or were
damaged. He made wooden pillows to support their heads and cleaned their
eyes with salt water each morning. His turtles were sent on to England and
fetched a good price.
Burnham also
raised long haired West Indian sheep. This gave the family a little
change in diet. The family grew many vegetables including corn.
Wildlife including the bounty from the ocean, deer and bear. Live was
good, but there was very little to do here. After the killing of John
Barker in August of 1849, the Burnham's and all the other settlers left the
colony. He and his family which now included three more daughters, moved
to Cape Canaveral in 1853. Mills died on April 17, 1886, at age 68, at
Cape Canaveral, where he had been lighthouse keeper.
References:
A new Historical Novel with reference to Mills
Burnham is: Canaveral Light.
A Portrait of St. Lucie County, Florida, by Lucille Rieley Rights 1994
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