{"id":3153,"date":"2015-08-10T19:48:58","date_gmt":"2015-08-10T23:48:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/morrison-q.com\/wp\/?p=3153"},"modified":"2017-10-11T07:59:24","modified_gmt":"2017-10-11T11:59:24","slug":"morrison-q-gathering-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/morrison-q.com\/wp\/?p=3153","title":{"rendered":"Morrison-Q Gathering 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

Comments from some of our 2015 Morrison-Q Gathering participants:<\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

I find it surreal when I consider it has only been 5 years since a mere five of us planned a meeting to take place in Lancaster County, PA. We had been talking of meeting for quite some time \u2013 but it finally came to fruition in September of 2010. It was during this time of research, fellowship, and planning that the idea of Morrison-Q was born. Soon a logo and WEB site were created and a discussion group was formed. Cousins from all over the country were finding us and joining in the vision. What became our first annual Gathering was soon followed by a second, third and more.<\/p>\n

Some may say it was coincidental \u2013 but, I say it was providential \u2013 John and his wife Sue represented the line of Thomas, Jean represented the line of William, Jim represented the line of Andrew, and I represented the line of James. I believe that historic gathering was probably the first time in over 250 years all four immigrant brother lines were again united in the land that became our first American home. To commemorate the event I commissioned Jim Morrison (Q12) to paint a picture, which I call \u201cReunion\u201d, a visual record depicting the four descendants who first gathered, spawning what we now call Morrison-Q. You can see a photo below of us posing with the painting.<\/p>\n

Our 2015 Gathering was very gratifying. We have come a long way in just five years. I can\u2019t wait to see what another five years will bring. As you read the many accounts of this year\u2019s gathering \u2013 it\u2019s hard not to be proud to be part of such a vast and wonderful family! Thank you to the 21 participants who added depth to the discussions and warmth to the fellowship! May these testimonies that follow encourage more of our kin to join us next year.<\/p>\n

Coit Morrison \u2013 SC \u2013 J2bb \u2013 Q1<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

I was so thrilled to meet so many of my relatives at this gathering. I learned so much in the short time I was able to participate. I thank everyone for being so warm and welcoming. I do want to participate in more gatherings. However, I may not be able to stay in the same house setting due to my inability to tolerate heat and most people heat their homes warmer than I do. This is not a problem for me to stay in a hotel or somewhere else and participate in everything. I do look forward to learning more and doing some research with my brother. We enjoy this. Thank you all again!<\/p>\n

Vicki Morrison \u2013 NC \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q102<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

I enjoy these gatherings mostly because I get to know my cousins a little better and meet ones I’ve heard about yet not met yet and get to know them too. I also love to hear the fascinating stories of our ancestors of how and why they made their way to the “New World” and then on down to NC. And the meeting location is ideal, at least for me.<\/p>\n

Dave Morrison \u2013 NC \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q3<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Well, what a weekend! By my count, 12 Morrison cousins (counting myself), maybe more. And spouses. Two of you my 6th cousins, the rest apparently 7ths. And all with a common interest, including an interest in sharing knowledge. The depth and breadth of the discussion sessions were staggering. John\u2019s presentation on migrations was fascinating. I enjoyed them all. I was constantly developing threads of thought that will impact my thinking and studies well beyond the Morrison connection. That connection for me is through my 2X great grandmother, Elizabeth Agnes Morrison, daughter of Thomas (Hog) Morrison, so I expected the DNA presentations to be of little interest. Wrong! My 1stcousins on my mother\u2019s side will be meeting in mid-September, and my wife Mary Lee is asking what on earth we will talk about for 3 days. Well, DNA, of course. The main things I learned about DNA are that I need to know more about how to mine for info about it and that it will be interesting to see just how that info might be applied. The house where we met gave no problems that I was aware of (it was well located and accommodating) and the food was great. As for Gatlinburg, it just isn\u2019t what it was 60 years ago (to some that might be a good thing). But then, no place else is either. The best part of the Gathering? You folks. I saw a sign in a shop there: \u201cI\u2019m smiling because you are my brother, and I\u2019m laughing because there is nothing you can do about it!\u201d Well, I\u2019m smiling because my wife and I were well received, and I\u2019m laughing because you\u2019re not only kin, I count you now as friends. We\u2019ll be seeing you all again, soon.<\/p>\n

David Bagwell \u2013 TN \u2013 J1da \u2013 Q74<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

One of the best things that resulted in my doing genealogy on my Dad’s family, is learning about an ever expanding extended family. I have had the pleasure in meeting cousins that I never knew existed, such was the case in my going to Gatlinburg this past week. I got the chance to meet 7 new cousins, as well as enjoying 8 cousins that I have known for years. It seemed like we all were saying our goodbye\u2019s way to soon. In the 30+ years I have been doing my genealogy I cannot even guess the exact number of cousins I have met, many like this in person, and many more through correspondence. But with each one, they have enriched my life immeasurably. I look forward to our next get together.<\/p>\n

Jim Morrison \u2013 IL \u2013 A3ab \u2013 Q12<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

This, as well as I can remember, was our fifth gathering; the others were in 2010 (Pennsylvania), 2012 (Allison Woods, in Iredell County), 2013 (Chesterfield, Mo), and 2014 (NC Outer Banks). From an initial attendance of 5, we reached 21 this year. That increase in attendance, alone, is most gratifying to me and reflects our growing Morrison-Q membership and interest in our common line of ancestry. For this, we should all be grateful for the untiring efforts of Coit Morrison. Other than the abundance of tourists and heavy traffic within Gatlinburg and its approaches, Gatlinburg is a good place for our gathering. It is close to the majority of our membership, offers many places to stay, and has attractions for those who want to spend some time being tourists. For those farther away, and I am one of the farthest, Gatlinburg is four or five hours closer to home than other places in North Carolina. Whatever disadvantages that Gatlinburg and its surroundings have are eliminated when staying in rental houses away from the main drag, eating meals there, and concentrating on fellowship and subjects of genealogical interest. In addition, Gatlinburg is \u201cjust over the hill\u201d for those who need or want to add in some family history research. Gatlinburg was a good choice for a meeting place and I am glad it will be the site of our 2016 gathering. Fellowship has always been, to me, the outstanding feature of our gatherings. This year, we had eight present who had not attended a previous meeting of this type. Of our total of 21, four were young folks. I was very happy to welcome David Morrison back this year and to meet Richard\u2019s daughter and granddaughters (yes, Lisa, from my perspective you are one of the young folks). As a representative of the elder group, I was pleased to see members of our younger generations present and hope to see them continue to come and learn about our family heritage and history. It was a pleasure to meet the Bagwell\u2019s as well as Richard\u2019s family, Vickie Morrison, and Tom Akers, all of whom had not been present with us in the past. Throughout our time together, I was conscious of people getting acquainted and reacquainted, engaging in earnest side discussion, laughter and joking, directing their attention to items of common interest, and generally enjoying the company of other people. As always, our presentations were timely and interesting. I was especially interested in the presentations made by Coit and Rene about Y and autosomal DNA. I am learning more and more about the uses of DNA to enhance our research and understanding of relationships. Both are difficult subjects for me to understand and each iteration is helpful. Thanks to both of them for presenting complicated subjects and helping me to better understand them and their applications. Coit has mentioned that we ought to have two houses close together next year; that ought to help us with additional places for presentations and means to have \u201cbreak out\u201d sessions that are of specific interest to smaller groups of people. I would like to attend a session for writers of family history, one devoted specifically to practical, uncomplicated methods for annotating source documents.<\/p>\n

John & Sue Morrison \u2013 MO \u2013 T1cg \u2013 Q7<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

With our Morrison-Q Group gathering now behind us, and hearing an expression of support for a \u201cSame time, next year\u201d repeat gathering, I know several of us have begun again to conquer our research brick walls as well as working on brick walls for some of our Q cousins who are blocked in a more recent generation than the four brothers. The opportunity to meet more of our cousins and spend time infused a great spirit of camaraderie to our three plus days together in Gatlinburg. We learned more about the Morrison Y-DNA, and the many autosomal matches among those who have been tested. Rene\u2019s presentation brought us all up a couple more rungs on the \u201cunderstanding\u201d ladder. I encourage all of you who have not entered this arena to do so as soon as you can. If you are not a Y-line Morrison, the results of autosomal testing will bring you right into our relationships. If you are a Y-line Morrison, this testing will identify other potential matching lines.<\/p>\n

We closed our collective time together with dinner at the Apple Barn Restaurant in Pigeon Forge, and its\u2019 delicious fried chicken was seen on many plates around the long table. Big thanks to Terry Bryson, Rene\u2019s husband who volunteered to be our resident photographer and videographer. They plan to make the images available \u2013 after the details of putting their house on the market and moving to the mountains are in order.<\/p>\n

With a big thanks to Coit for planning our time together, and a wish that all of you can join us next time, I hope to see some of y\u2019all in September at the luncheon gathering over Labor Day. I am anxious to hit the road again. This time without the rain and floods\u2026<\/p>\n

Jean Morrison \u2013 OH \u2013 W3cf \u2013 Q5<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

It was a huge \u2026<\/p>\n

S<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Size more than doubled in attendees from 2014 (10 persons to 21 persons)
\nU<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Unity in spirit to work together
\nC<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Common goals to learn about our Morrison ancestors
\nC<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Created a family bond between us
\nE<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Exceptional presentations
\nS<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 Shared a love for genealogy, history and family<\/p>\n

Hope even more Morrison-Q members are able to share this experience next year!<\/p>\n

Rene &\u00a0Terry Bryson \u2013 NC \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q38<\/span><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Those who attended our 2015 Morrison-Q Gathering:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Coit Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 J2bb \u2013 Q1<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Dave Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q3<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Jean Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 W3cf \u2013 Q5<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. John Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 T1cg \u2013 Q7<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Sue Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 Wife of Q7<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. Jim Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 A3ab \u2013 Q12<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. Richard Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 A3aa \u2013 Q35<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. Gloria Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 Wife of Q35<\/span><\/li>\n
  9. Rene Bryson<\/strong> \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q38<\/span><\/li>\n
  10. Terry Bryson<\/strong> \u2013 Husband of Q38<\/span><\/li>\n
  11. Tom Akers<\/strong> \u2013 W??? \u2013 Q57<\/span><\/li>\n
  12. David Bagwell<\/strong> \u2013 J1da \u2013 Q74<\/span><\/li>\n
  13. Mary Bagwell<\/strong> \u2013 Wife of Q74<\/span><\/li>\n
  14. Jolette Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 J2ca \u2013 Q75<\/span><\/li>\n
  15. Milton Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 W3bc \u2013 Q80<\/span><\/li>\n
  16. Catherine Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 Wife of Q80<\/span><\/li>\n
  17. David Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 W3bc \u2013 Q91<\/span><\/li>\n
  18. Vicki Morrison<\/strong> \u2013 T1aa \u2013 Q102<\/span><\/li>\n
  19. Lisa Anne Morrison Lance<\/strong> \u2013 A3aa \u2013 Q104<\/span><\/li>\n
  20. Megan Lance<\/strong> \u2013 Daughter of Q104<\/span><\/li>\n
  21. Ali Lance<\/strong> \u2013 Daughter of Q104<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Participants lodged in the house, a condo, and 3 hotels – all very close by.<\/p>\n

    The following is a rough outline of the weekend:<\/h3>\n
    <\/div>\n
    \n