On March 25, 2017, members of the Morrison-Q Genealogical Association visited the home place of William Morrison, Sr. William was born in 1795 in Burke County, NC to John Morrison, who was the son of William Morrison of Burke County. William Morrison, Sr. settled in the Cowee area of Macon County, NC. In 1832 he built a log cabin with a half-story loft.
As time passed, improvements were made to the Morrison House by covering the logs with clapboard, adding a second story, two tall chimneys and windows. A log cabin became a farmhouse. Amazingly, the oldest standing structure in Macon County has survived numerous tragedies, including the Civil War and a fire. Cindy and Jackie Gregory, residents of Franklin, came to the rescue of the deteriorating home in 2012.
Cindy and Jackie gladly gave us a tour of the home, and it was evident that the restoration has been done with great care. Standing in the original room of the home, you can see the four walls that look as they did in the 1830s with slats of wood and chinking between them. It looks as if the house is wrapped inside another house. Wood from the older home was used to trim around the doors and windows. A large fireplace made of fieldstones dominates the kitchen just as it did in the old home place.
Direct descendants of William Morrison Sr., brothers James Dean Morrison and Don Morrison, reminisced about the times they spent at their third great grandfather’s place. Other Morrison-Q members who toured the Morrison House included Rene Bryson and her husband Terry, Milton Morrison and his wife Catherine and Coit Morrison.
It was a fun-filled day for those who shared a meal together at the Sunset Restaurant, toured the property once owned by William Morrison Sr. and checked out some local cemeteries.
RENE WILLIAMS BRYSON
Morrison Field Trip to Macon County NC, March 25, 2017
Left to Right: James Dean Morrison (Charlotte, NC), Rene W. Bryson (Marion, NC), Don Morrison (Clayton, GA), Coit Morrison (Rock Hill, SC), Catherine J. Morrison (Hamptonville, NC), (Cindy Gregory, Franklin, NC), Milton H. Morrison (Hamptonville, NC) and (Jackie Gregory, Franklin, NC).
Photography by Terry L. Bryson (Marion, NC)
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