FIFTY YEARS OF HARDIE REUNIONS – 1974-2024
What a wonderful celebration of FIFTY YEARS of Hardie family gatherings! On a beautiful weekend from Friday April 12 through Sunday, April 14, the Hardie and Greene families gathered on the grounds of Thornhill. Our celebration began Friday night in and around the family home at a Welcome Gathering hosted by the Greene and Goetze families.Hugh Griffiths gave a rousing Celtic toast for those who founded the organization, specifically our matriarch Anna Minnigerode. We also celebrated a triple April 12 birthday and the birth of another Hardie just the night before. Hardies in attendance who had also been present for the 1974 reunion were honored by name and awarded “golden thistle & tartan” pins.
On Saturday, we gathered for a Bar-B-Que Picnic at the Pavilion, participated in either the House or Cemetery Scavenger Hunt (for prizes), and shopped at “John Hardie & Co.” for Hardie genealogy books, souvenir t-shirts, hand-crafted “Thornhill” plaques, Farquharson tartan fashions and more! And of course, all Hardies and Greenes engaged in our favorite pastime of lengthy, in depth and frequently humorous discussion and remembrances. Saturday evening, we had the choice of two venues up the road in Anniston for dining (and further engagement) . Attendees enjoyed either a casual gathering at Coldwater Mountain Brewpub or a more upscale dinner at a family favorite, The Classic on Noble. Sunday was a free day with a list of optional activities in the area.
In addition to the scheduled events, on Saturday after the crouds thinned, a few family members gathered in Thornhill Cemetery. Toasts were made for the founder of our American family, John Hardie; the founder of our family Foundation, Anna Minnigerode; and our Foundation leader for many years, William H. (Mobile Bill) Hardie, Jr. A “golden thistle & tartan” pin was placed on each of their graves.
All in all, it was a memorable event with great weather, beautiful surroundings, and as usual a group of folks, young and old, who enjoy gathering together and having a lovely time. What more could one desire?
(More photos of the FIFTIETH REUNION will be published in the Spring/Summer 2024 Newsletter)
FIRST HARDIE FAMILY REUNION – 1974
In March of 1974, 140 descendants of John and Mary Hardie gathered for the first reunion at Thornhill, not quite 140 years after the family home was built. At this reunion, it was decided that this was a pretty good thing and was worth repeating. Furthermore, there should be a Thornhill Foundation.
Click below to view the invitation for that first reunion and to read Anna Minnigerode’s write up of the reunion, including names of attendees. Were you, your parents, or grandparents there?
FIRST REUNION INVITATION
FIRST REUNION WRITE UP
THE THORNHILL FOUNDATION
The Thornhill Foundation is a non-profit Alabama corporation, set up by the descendants of John and Mary Mead Hall Hardie of Thornhill. In addition to using this page to describe the work of the foundation, you may find information on the Hardies in Scotland, some information on John Hardie’s siblings, as well as links to other Hardie related web resources.
THE HARDIE FAMILY
The Genealogy Committee of the Thornhill Foundation has worked diligently over the years to develop and update information on the descendants of John and Mary Mead Hall Hardie. John Hardie of Thornhill and His Family written by Lillian Galt Martin, was the result of hard work, and dedication of numerous family members over several years. A supplement to this book which updates individuals included in the book and adds information on Hardies since its publication is available on this website. The Genealogy Committee is currently working to continue the updating of this supplement. Please write us or use the contact form to forward any family news or updates.
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THORNHILL
Thornhill was constructed around 1835 by John and Mary Mead Hall Hardie. John and Mary raised their children together at Thornhill until John’s Death in 1848. Mary lived at Thornhill until her death in 1872. Daughter Ann Eliza and her husband J.M. Lewis inherited the home. Thornhill was sold out of the family until purchased by descendant Anna Meade Minnigerode and her husband, Gordon. The Minnigerodes welcomed family and friends to Thornhill once more. Currently the Greene family live at Thornhill and we are all fortunate to have a family who love Thornhill as much as our family has throughout the generations.
NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY
NEWS AND EVENTS
Join us for our annual Hardie Family Reunion and Meeting of the Thornhill Foundation. Each year we meet in a different host location. Popular locations are Thornhill in Talladega, Alabama; New Orleans where two of John Hardie’s sons established their own family and businesses; the Alabama Gulf Coast. We have also traveled abroad returning to Scotland and even being hosted by Hardie descendants in Paris. Click on the links below for information on registering for these events as well as our newsletter which includes reflections on past reunions, family news updates, and other items of interest to Hardies.
JOIN/CONTRIBUTE/DONATE
If you wish to make a contribution to The Thornhill Foundation, you may make a general gift or choose to designate it to the Thornhill Cemetery Endowment Fund. Donors of Memorial Gifts may wish to make their gifts to this permanent fund. Memorial gifts are recorded in the records of the Foundation, and acknowledgments of the gift are sent to the family of the person honored by the gift.
CONTACT
Please mail us at thornhillfoundation@gmail.com; or fill out our Contact Form with your contact information and ask a question; let us know your interest in the Thornhill Foundation or the John Hardie family; update your address or that of a family member so that we may stay in touch.
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The Thornhill Foundation
c/o Nicholas Goetze
2909 Garden Lane
Memphis, TN 38111