The New England Historical Society recently published an article I wrote about my ancestor, William Burbeck, and his feud with Paul Revere.
William Burbeck is my seventh great-grandfather on my paternal grandmother Beatrice Burbeck’s side of the family. William Burbeck was an artisan, artilleryman, and Freemason in Boston during the time of the American Revolution.
In the 1770s, William was in the same Freemason lodge as Paul Revere, and the two men began a rivalry over a disagreement about the lodge’s charter, which eventually spilled over into other aspects of their lives.
William never revealed why he stubbornly refused to hand over the lodge’s charter, though some believe he did so in the hopes of being repaid for investments he made in the lodge’s Green Dragon Tavern.
Yet, other historians believe he possibly did it because he feared that Revere, the son of a Frenchman, harbored anti-British sentiments and would use the charter to break with the Grand Lodge of Scotland.
William Burbeck was the son of an Englishman, Edward Burbeck of Yorkshire, and, having lost his father in 1740, he seemed to hold those British traditions and connections close to his heart, especially since it seemed at the time that the colonies were on the verge of severing ties with Britain.
I first came across the story about 10 years ago when I was researching my family history and discovered a book titled A True Republican: The Life of Paul Revere, which discussed the feud.
I then sought out more information on the story but found only a few sources, since it wasn’t a widely known story and it is often overshadowed by Paul Revere’s famous Midnight Ride, which took place a few years later.
It will probably never be known why exactly William Burbeck refused to hand over the charter, but it definitely makes for an interesting story and adds some color to my family history. I only wish my dad and my grandmother were still around to read it. I think they would have enjoyed learning about it as much as I did.
Read the full article on the New England Historical Society’s website A Forgotten Episode: Paul Revere’s Feud with William Burbeck.