The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1897-06-11
FLEMING FAMILY REUNION.

FLEMING FAMILY REUNION.
An Historic and Interesting Paper Read
BY w. ). Fleming.
Friday last was a day that will ever
be a pleasant memory to those of the
Fleming name and blood who had the
good fortune to be present at the family
gathering which took place near the
old homestead at Zion Church.
The day opened with rain, and not
only the children, but the older people
wore looks of disappointment. Tele
phone bells in country and town kept
up continual ringing, and the ques-
ton, "shall we give it upY' passed re-
peatedly over the wires. Finally it
was decided to wait until IL O'Clock and
see if the weather would change. Three
little tots in one family, John, Annie
MAY and Ruth, stole off to the nursery
and prayed in simple faith that the rain
would stop. About eleven o'clock 1t
seemed to be Frightening up: the bells
again began to ring, and the messages
came and went, "The lunches are ready,
we cannot postpone; we will 60" And
we went: at least those named below
did, although some of the older men,
bers were deferred by the dampness
and uncertain outlook.
Those present were, Jonn F. Stephen
son and wife and two of their childreni
Horace Rainey and wife and three chill
dren; Mrs. Adeline Fleming of Georgia
and son, Oatman Fleming; Albert, son
of Knox Fleming; w. 5. Fleming and
wife and four children; Mrs. ). q.
Huntington, Miss Narcissa Williams,
Will Dobbins, Dir. j. G.. Williamson
and wife and eight children; julius F.
Fleming, Robel q. Fleming, James A.
Fleming and David Fleming; Walker
and Whitney, sons of Preston Fleming
Geo. c. McFall and wife and two chill
dren, and Dick Fleming, colored, who
nursed Il. +. Fleming and afterward
went with him as body-servant during
the war.
The assembled hOst-after the grave
of Chancellor Fleming, the last to die,
had been decorated by his immediate
family with magnolias, sweet-peas and
poppies-went through the church, had
bucket of water brought by faithful
Dick from the old family spring, and
then the ladies spread the diuner on
the benches in the rear room of
Stephenson Academy. 1t was royal
feast, of fried and broiled chicken, old
ham, roast beef, dried beef, salads,
pickle bread, biscuits, sandwiches,
cake, banana cake, lemon cake, lemon
and goose berry pies and frozen cream,
tea, coffee, cheese strawS and candy.
After the cravings of hunger had
given place to feelings of full satisfac-
ton, and the small boys had waded the
branch, chased stray pigs and made the
pony kick to their hearts content, all
assembled in Stephenson Academy,
which had been opened, and then com
menced a flow of fun and merry jest, in
terspersed with melodious songs from
Julius F., James A., Robert and David
Fleming. Some of the children also
responded to requests for speech and
song, among them being George Will
| hanson, Mary and Addie Rainey, John,
Annie May and Ruth Fleming, and
Matte Williamson.
During the evening w. ;. Fleming
read sketch of the family, quoting
from book entitled "Biggar and the
House Of Fleming" published at Edin-
burg, Scotland, in 1867, to show that the
/ family originated first in Flanders, re-
moved to Scotland during the twelfth
century, where they were called Elem
| ings, because they came from Flanders
and about the year 1903, were raised by
King Robert Bruce of Scotland and his
successor to the Earldoms of Wigton
l
gar and Cumbernauld, which they re-
tanned throughout the reigns of the
| Bruce and Stuart dynasties. That
the family was allied to the Stuarts by
! blood and allegiance, and followed the
fortunes of that unhappy line until its
extinction, being restored to the Earl
dom of Wigtom bv James VI, after he
assembled the English throne, by letters
patent dated at Whitehall in 1919 That
they espoused the cause of the Re.
formation in Scotland, and that in all
probability, John Fleming, who we
know went from Scotland to Ireland
thence to South Carolina in the wear
| 1870, was a cadet of the family traced in
the above book; especially as the facts
therein stated correspond with tradi.
tious handed down tOus.
This book was loaned to w. 5. Elem.
ing by Mr.. JnO. d. Fleming, of Kansas
| City, Missouri, a descendant of the Vir-
ginia branch. 1t is positively known
that John Fleming, our ancestor, came
! from Ireland to South Carolina in the
year 1870, accompanied by his son
James, his wife Janet, and his father
in-law John WitherspOOn, who was
| born in Dumfries, Scotland, in the yeaI
1870, and who was the ancestor OF
! WitherspOon, one of the signers of the
declaration of independence, and a
descendant of John Knox.
The family is Scotch; by sojourning
in Scotland was called Scotch-Irish, and
they are and have been since the DAYS
of John Knox, Presbyterians almost tc
| a man.
James Fleming, son of John, married
Mary Stuart in South Carolina, and to
them a son, James, was born. This
second James married Margaret Frier.
son in South Carolina. He fought on
the side of the patriots in the American
Revolution at an early age, and died in
South Carolin, leaving surviving him
his widow and four sOns-Thomas r.
John D., William Stuart and James
J Sidney. These four came with their
mother and kindred of the Frierson,
Armstrong, Stephenson and Dickey
families, to Maury County in 1907, and
settled near Zion Church at the old
homestead which was held by the