In mid-April, 2023, several descendants of Thomas Douglas Hall (1758-1833), a Revolutionary War patriot, gathered for a day of sharing histories, pictures, stories and memories.
John Ross Gresham Jr., a Hall descendant, opened the luncheon at O’Charley’s Restaurant with the official welcome and toast to “those who have gone before us.”
John Finbarr Saunders III, a Hall descendant, offered the blessing and introduced the guest speaker, Steve Cotham, retired director of the McClung Library, who spoke on the Hall family, one of Tennessee’s first families, and Paul James, development director for The History Project.
After the luncheon, the group visited the Thomas Hall Cemetery on Rifle Range Road, where the patriot is buried, and the historic Greenwood Cemetery on Tazewell Pike.
Eric C. Dawson, manager of the C.M. McClung Historical Collection at The East Tennessee History & Research Center on Gay Street, graciously provided a display from the Hall Family collection for the group.
A dinner was held in the evening at Monterey’s Restaurant where “cousins” had an opportunity to share “family group” artifacts.
Most attendees were from the Halls area in Knoxville, and some came from as far away as Chattanooga; Granville, North Carolina; Gregory, Michigan; and Charleston, South Carolina.
John Ross Gresham Jr. provided information for this report.