JD (John Douglas Burleson) was born in Durham, NC in 1948, and (grew up) in Thomasville, NC, the oldest of six children of Odis and Ruth Ward Burleson. I graduated from East Davidson High School in 1968 and went into the Army that same year; I am retired from the military with 27 years of service. I was married in 1971 to Karol Hilliard. We had a daughter Sheila and two sons Chad and Wesley. We have three grandsons and one granddaughter. Karol passed away in 2013 after 42 years of marriage.
I joined the BFA (Burleson Family Association) in 1995 and am presently on the Board of Directors. I started my journey of family research in genealogy. I along with John Hoyle Burleson started the BFRG (Burleson Family Research Group) in 1996. We have a Burleson Family Reunion annually in October, and we have monthly meetings the first Monday of each month. We publish a quarterly newsletter (“The Recollections”), maintain five Burleson Family Cemeteries, maintain the Web Page bfrg.info, a Facebook page, and we published 13 books on separate Stanly County Burleson lines. I am a member of the Colson’s Mill Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution.
I am presently retired with 37 years from Wright’s Global Graphics where I was a plant manager. I love to travel and look for our nation’s history.

JD (John Douglas Burleson) was born in Durham, NC in 1948, and (grew up) in Thomasville, NC, the oldest of six children of Odis and Ruth Ward Burleson. I graduated from East Davidson High School in 1968 and went into the Army that same year; I am retired from the military with 27 years of service. I was married in 1971 to Karol Hilliard. We had a daughter Sheila and two sons Chad and Wesley. We have three grandsons and one granddaughter. Karol passed away in 2013 after 42 years of marriage.
I joined the BFA (Burleson Family Association) in 1995 and am presently on the Board of Directors. I started my journey of family research in genealogy. I along with John Hoyle Burleson started the BFRG (Burleson Family Research Group) in 1996. We have a Burleson Family Reunion annually in October, and we have monthly meetings the first Monday of each month. We publish a quarterly newsletter (“The Recollections”), maintain five Burleson Family Cemeteries, maintain the Web Page bfrg.info, a Facebook page, and we published 13 books on separate Stanly County Burleson lines. I am a member of the Colson’s Mill Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution.
I am presently retired with 37 years from Wright’s Global Graphics where I was a plant manager. I love to travel and look for our nation’s history.