Alkire Millennium Gathering
Whew!! finally got it done!! The Millennium reunion has been held, & from all the feedback I've gotten, everyone felt it had not only been fun, but well worth the expense & time spent.
Starting Friday afternoon, our "early greeters" (Pam Zeirott & Carl Porter) were at the hotel, meeting the folks as they came in. This was good for all, because it gave them all a chance to sit & tell each other about themselves, as well as ask questions of our "local tour guides". My daughter Layla & I arrived in Columbus at 1:30 am, and were able to get to the hotel around 3 am. I -love- rushing around!!<g>
Saturday morning, bright & early, Pam was at our door, checking to see if we were ok, & everything was the way it was supposed to be. Greeting the rest of the folks in the lobby, we made the caravan trek south to Deer Creek State Park, where we had reserved the conference room, with a spectacular view of Deer Creek lake, & let everyone have a chance to talk about what they were looking for in their research of the family. We had several representatives of the Ohio branch families, as well as some from the W.Va. group. Roughly 30 folks showed up, some with the kids, some not. Carl presented a talk regarding the Christian Restoration Movement, & the role our early family members played in that.
This also accompanied the request for searching for George Alkires' autobiography, which we have heard of, but have not seen yet. Somewhere, someone has one out there, or the manuscripts. Since George was one of the youngest of Harmonas' children, he would be able to offer a unique perspective on that branch of the family.
We were also pleasantly surprised by the lovely gift that JoAnn Alkire Roland had brought with her, which is her first book regarding the Alkire clan in the early part of the 1700's. This book is one of the most insightful ones I have read regarding the time period, and having one that centered on our family makes for even more compelling reading. Jo has had the love for history for quite a while, & having taught it as a schoolteacher really allows her to "bring it alive" in her written word. More on ordering this book later in the webpage........
Most of the afternoon at Deer Creek was spent in mixing with each other, looking at the items (marriage certificates, photos, books, etc.) that each person had brought, & generally "visiting". Now that we can put "faces to the people", I would expect a greater sharing amongst us all. Sadly, the afternoon drew to a close, & we all bid each other good-bye, with email addresses exchanged. What a fun way to meet & spend time with family members!!
Sunday morning saw a group of us venturing out to Michael Alkires' farmland out by Deer Creek, with the express purpose of finding the cemetery, & locating & photographing the stones there. The host owner of the property had just recovered from heart surgery, & was only able to accompany us a short time. We found the cemetery, & began the process of locating & photographing stones. Strangely enough, we could not find Michael's stone, although we were told there had been some stones tossed "down hill". Without some equipment to remove the brush, and stone repair to several of the headstones, it will be very hard to return this cemetery to the condition it enjoyed 100 years ago. With the group (around 13 of us) looking & probing, we were able to find a few stones that had not been listed in the early version that the DAR had read in the early 1900's. These had later burial dates then the others, & indicated that the cemetery had been in use later then had been thought. Which means, there could very well be other burials there we don't have "proof" of, but can now suspect with a higher degree of likelihood, (i.e., William M. Alkire). After spending time at Michael's we traveled over into Williamsport, & photographed stones in the Old Christian Church Cemetery.
Monday saw us traveling through other cemeteries, some which we had not tried before. There were some which had several stones for us to look at, while others were a complete blank for direct, or affiliated lines. A very worth while day, as we were able to locate an entire "lost" leg on our branch.
Tuesday was a great day, we were able to go to Pickaway Cty. courthouse, & go through their records in the morning, while the afternoon was spent in the Pickaway Cty. Historical Society, researching & sharing with the other local researchers. We were able to get the records needed to post online (I'm still working on getting them ready), so that we will not be trying to duplicate our own efforts. It was a very satisfying day, & a great day for the research!
Wednesday Carl, Greg, Pam, Layla, & myself went up into Columbus to see the Ohio Historical Society, & research there. Several hours passed quickly, but we were able to make some real inroads on proof needed to claim, or dis-claim certain "traditions". -That's- what the research is for!! We then traveled over to the State library, which has a rather complete genealogy section, & were able to accomplish even more research needed. Another great day!! Carl & Greg had to head back to Illinois after dinner, so we parted once again.
Thursday was yet another day for exploring cemeteries for Pam, Layla, & I, mostly in Fayette Cty. The Washington Court House library has a very good genealogy room, and an excellent set of books for doing research. We were able to find several items of interest; as well as taking a tour of the town, finding the houses that our g-g-grandfather had lived in. Pam had to head home from here, so after closing the library out, we said our good-byes. Layla & I finished the day by getting all the accumulated data packed up, & ready for our return flight to L.A. the next morning.
What a week!!
Before closing this, I would personally like to thank the folks that took the time & expense to come to this reunion. I realize it wasn't easy for everyone, & that there were some folks who would have liked to be there, but couldn't make it due to time/money constraints. We really missed you! For those that were able to attend, I would like to thank you for not only being there, but helping make it the success it turned into. It did not succeed because of me, I merely provided the format to arrange the meeting, it was a success because of you!!
And for that, I would like to thank you again on behalf of everyone that was there.
Special thanks go to Pam & Brent Zeirott, who went above & beyond the call to make sure the legwork got done, & did the shopping for our hotel & meeting spots.
Special thanks also to Carl Porter, who has brought such a large body of genealogical research to this that we are all better informed because of his diligence, & persistence in preserving the record of this family. And also for understanding that the living family members are the true jewels here, and the treasures to be cherished.
OK, guys, I'm gonna take a few surgeries here shortly, so will be out of the loop for a short while. It will be a bit before I set up another one of these reunions, but next year was mentioned with a lot of enthusiasm in Ohio again. I like it there........California also has a large group of varied Alkires, maybe we can get a group together out here. Let me know....
Until then, take care, TTYL, & God bless.
Ian