Wayne County, NC - Heritage Series Reprinted with permission of the Mount Olive Tribune and cannot be reproduced without permission. Another Reunion "Our Heritage" By Claude Moore date Last Sunday our 59th annual reunion of the Moore-Thomson-Hicks-Faison families was held at old Beulah (Ten Mile) Church near here with more than 200 members attending. They were here from California, Arizona, Texas, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Virginia, Maryland, and New York. The reunion is always held at this site because this is the center of large land grants received by these families from the crown during the Colonial period. This was also the site of an early Anglican Chapel which was discontinued during the Revolution when the minister the Rev. Hobart Briggs, a Tory, resigned and returned to England. Beulah Baptist Church was organized on the site in 1813 with the Rev. David Thomson (1791-1844) as the first pastor. The Eastern Baptist Association was organized at Beulah in 1827. On Saturday night a dinner was held at Fussell's Restaurant in Clinton for the out-of-state members with 30 members attending. This year the Thomson family was honored. It was interesting to note that not a member of the family bearing the name now lives in Sampson or Duplin. In 1731 two brothers, Andrew Thomson, a silversmith, and his brother, David Thomson, both natives of Stirling, Scotland, along with other Scottish settlers, landed in Burlington, New Jersey. Sometime prior to 1738 they settled in Bertie County. In 1753 they received land grants from the crown in what is now Turkey Township, Sampson County. Andrew Thomson (died 1778) married two Hicks sisters and one of the daughters Ann Thomson (born 1739) married Major James Moore (1729-1785). He was an officer of the American Revolution. Andrew Thomson was a member of the Colonial Assembly in 1760 and a Vestryman of St. Gabriel's Perish. David Thomson (1711-1773) married a Miss Legget and had several children including a son, Captain James Thomson (1753-1836), an officer of the American Revolution and a member of the N.C. Constitutional Convention 1788-1789. Mrs. Page Thomson Steele of Houston, Texas, recently erected a marker at the grave of David Thomson. The group gathered at the church at 11 o'clock on Sunday. A welcome was given by Page Steele and a prayer was made by the Rev. Earl Rogers of Lexington, N.C. New members and out-of-state members were recognized. Reports were made on the Faison-Thomson and Moore cemeteries, and the Cabin Museum, all of which are supported or sponsored by the family organization. Plans are under way to make some restorations at the historic Faison Cemetery at Elliott. A memorial was held for departed members of the families. Special remarks were made to honor the family members who had served in the American Wars in recognition of Memorial Day. At 12:30 the clan came to our house for picnic dinner which was spread on tables in the grove. A spirit of old-time southern fellowship prevailed. Mrs. Barbara Bullard played the violin during the dinner hour. After dinner, some visited the Cabin Museum, the cemeteries, and a number went to the open house at Magnolia Hall in Faison, hosted by Mrs. Verna Taylor. Some of the out-of-state members stayed over for visits to historic sites in the community on Monday and Tuesday. ============================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. The electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Guy Potts ==============================================================