Margaret Bruton

A professor at a college in TX messaged Mia while she was on the desk re a Margaret Bruton who was thought to have attended a "finishing school" in the 1860s in the area. I did a little research and replied as follows:

Hi, your message asking about a Margaret Bruton came to me. I checked my records, and there is no one that I see surnamed Bruton in the lists of our predecessors, the Collegiate Institute or Normal school. In a search of the local paper in nyshistoricnewspapers.org, an 1864 mention did pop up of a Christopher Bruton being a sergeant in “Capt. Edwards Company,” he was listed as 22 years old, and from Riga NY. That makes me wonder if perhaps your Margaret Bruton might have been from Riga, and attended the Riga Academy. That institution is long closed, but the building still stands as private residence:

 

http://nyhistoric.com/2013/09/riga-academy/

 

You might try contacting Ron Belczak, he is the Churchville Village Village and Riga Town Historian: