Hi Ron, A search of old occupations does not show an occupation "Burgis" but I would suggest that it most probably was an another spelling/older spelling version of "Burgess": BURGESS - represented a borough at official levels .................. England: burgess *a (esp. vested) citizen of a town or borough *a holder either of land or a house in a borough, with special judicial privileges and a part to play in running the borough. ............... My dictionary: * burgess - a citizen or freeman of a British borough. * formerly, a member of the British Parliament representing a borough, corporate town, or university. * a member of the House of Burgesses, the lower house of the legislature of Md. or Va before the American Revolution. Hope the above is helpful to you :-) Kind Regards, Karen from Ohio, USA