ADAMS REUNION 2002

Hi George,

This is in response to your request to hear of Family Reunion plans.

The Descendant Families of Lewis & Susannah Adams will hold their 92nd Annual Family Reunion, 30 Aug-1 Sep 2002, in Urbana, Ohio.

Lewis (1785-1864) & Susannah Ried Adams (1795-1861) were the parents of 12 children, 10 surviving to adulthood. To date we have accounted for nearly 3,000 descendants in our family database.

This year we’re presenting a review of our Adams History, with members of the various branches bringing photos, artifacts & memorabilia to be on display during Reunion Weekend.
I’ve been asked to do a presentation, “Genealogy and the Underground Railroad: My Adams Family and their UGRR Activities (1820-1865)”, which was first done at the 5th Annual Ohio UGRR Summit in October 2000, held in Columbus, Ohio.

The presentation is enhanced by 2 accompanying display boards (3 panel, 36”x48”). Materials on the boards range from a copy of Lewis’ Freedom Papers (1813), a copy of Lewis’ Registration Paper as a Free Person of Color in Ohio (1816), a copy of the Marriage Record of Lewis & Susan (1816), a copy of the Deed of Conveyance for 200 acres of land purchased in 1829, Census pages from 1820 to 1860 showing
the growth of their immediate family, Photos of their (Lewis & Susan) burial site along with other family members, including Lewis’ mother, Sibbah (1768-1848). There is documentation from Prof. Wilbur H. Siebert, Ohio State University professor, author of “Mysteries of the UGRR” and reputedly, the foremost
Scholar of UGRR research. An example in Siebert’s collection is an interview of David Adams, son of Lewis and Susan, taken in 1894, where David describes his activities and those of his father (Lewis), his Grandfather Frank Reno and cousins Lewis and Joseph Reno. David’s photo appears on page 242 of Siebert’s book “Mysteries”. BTW, David Adams was honored this past April with a free standing marker
from the Ohio Bicentennial Commission placed where his barbershop stood in downtown Findlay, Ohio and was used as a “safehouse” on the UGRR. We also have copies of court cases (Medina & Champaign Counties) where the Adams Family ran afoul with the law in fighting Ohio’s Black Codes of the early to mid 1850’s.

There is much more, but this is enough to give you an idea of how Genealogy can/may be incorporated into your Family Reunion plans. If interested, there are some photos and documents to be seen on my Home Page (photo & related files sections) at the URL shown below, or get in touch with me at the above email address.

The descendant families, in the early years were located within a 50 mile radius of Urbana, so we’ve included a map which gives directions to the areas where these families resided. Included on the map are the churches, cemeteries and probable “home-sites” of those early descendants.

Good Luck & Best Wishes to All in your Reunion Planning,

Art Thomas