I am looking for information on the THOMPSON families of Fulton County. My great grandfather Anthony THOMPSON was born in Coshocton county, Ohio, in 1813. His parents, Samuel and Elizabeth THOMPSON, died there when he was 16. In 1843, at age 30, Anthony and two brothers came out to the Illinois frontier country. Anthony settled in Woodland Township in South Fulton county. In 1844 he married 17-year-old Lucy Shields, daughter of Kinsey Shields. For five years they lived in a log cabin schoolhouse. By the time Anthony died in 1870 at age 57, he had accumulated a farm of 360 acres east of Summum. Anthony and Lucy raised four daughters and one son. The son was my grandfather Benjamin THOMPSON. Benjamin married Rachel McNeil, daughter of David McNeil of Astoria. Nine of their children grew to adulthood---Orville, Oscar, John, Lute, Will, Carl, Earl, Carrie, and Lucy. Benjamin had four sisters: Mary Elizabeth, Nancy, Sarah, Minerva Jane and Martha. Mary married Enoch Thompson, believed to be a cousin. Nancy married John Hagan. Sarah married William Smith, and Minerva Jane married William Harvey Shelley. Martha married Thornton Bourell. The links between Anthony and the two brothers who were said to have came to Illinois with him was lost through the generations. There were other Thompsons in Fulton County and surrounding counties, but my parents never identified them as related. It is quite possible that other descendants might be more knowledgeable about the other lines. I'm only confessing my own ignorance. During the summer of '98 I assembled everything I could find on the descendants of Anthony and Lucy Thompson into a family tree that totals over 500 names, counting spouses. Much of my information came from papers left to me by my mother, Lucy Thompson (daughter of Benjamin). I also had information from Harry Thompson and Marilyn Shelley. I have very little information on many of the later generations of most family lines, except for my own family and one or two others. For nearly 80 years many of the descendants of Anthony THOMPSON have gathered for the annual family reunion. In recent years the reunion has been held at Putnam Park near Cuba. Many descendants still live in central Illinois, but many of us have migrated to "other parts." I live in Salt Lake City, Utah. My parents were Charley and Lucy Blue. My mother was the youngest child of Benjamin THOMPSON. I was born and grew up on the family farm in Woodland Township. One of my cousins, a retired nurse, Nedra Thompson Ashin, lives in California. Nedra's son, Bob Ashin, is a lawyer there, handling legal matters related to shopping malls. During the summer, while he was in Chicago for a meeting, he met a Peggy Thompson. They found that both had roots in central Illinois. With further investigation, they determined they were related. Turns out that Peggy was descended from Anthony's brother, John THOMPSON. The descendants of John THOMPSON hold their reunion in Canton. Harry Thompson, president of the Anthony THOMPSON Reunion, attended their reunion and met David Thompson, Peggy's father, who lives near Carrolton, Illinois. Since then David has exchanged information with us about his ancestors. One of my retirement occupations has been to visit the Family History Library of the LDS (Mormon) church here in Salt Lake City. I'm lucky enough to live hardly ten minutes from this enormous repository of family history. I found a great deal of information in the Fulton County part of the Illinois section. Combined that with what I already had, and the material from David Thompson, here is what we've found. ************ John Thompson was 11 years older than Anthony. Married in Ohio, he and his wife Keziah (third wife) had eight children and lived on a 124-acre farm in south Woodland Township. An 1895 plat map of the township shows an F. M. Thompson property. Francis Marion was one of his sons and probably inherited it from his father. The Watson School is on the west edge. John and Keziah Thompson are buried in the Morningstar Cemetery, not far from Anderson Lake. Interestingly, as a boy of 11 or 12, I recall visiting that cemetery. It was overgrown with trees and bushes, and many of the headstones were knocked down. Our youthful visit would have been in 1941 or '42. Through the efforts of David Thompson and others, I understand the cemetery is now being restored. In an 1879 history of Fulton County, I found short biographies of both John and Anthony. Though 12 years Anthony's senior, John outlived Anthony by 22 years. Four of their sons fought in the Civil War. David's grandfather was Francis Thompson. His father was Chester Thompson. They lived in Bluff City. His mother was Gladys Crable. One of his uncles, Hardy Thompson, lived in Astoria. Later on I found the third brother, Samuel. In the Fulton County Heritage history published by the Fulton County Historical and Genealogical Society, there is a story on the Kaler - Thompson Family, prepared by Ella Bolton of Canton. Her great grandfather was Samuel THOMPSON. According to her account, he settled in the Watson community in South Woodland, near his brother John. Samuel and Rosana Best THOMPSON had four children. One of them, George, was a blacksmith in Enion. George's daughter married Henry Kaler. The 1850 census lists an Elizabeth Thompson, age 22, living in John Thompson's household. She is too old to be their daughter. I wonder if she might be a sister who accompanied her brothers from Ohio? The histories say that John, Anthony, and Samuel are sons of Samuel and Elizabeth Asher THOMPSON. Samuel came from New Jersey and married Elizabeth in Maryland. John was born there in 1802. Anthony and Samuel were born in Coshocton County, Ohio. I've been searching for some trace of the family in Coshocton County, but so far have had no success. Another account In the Fulton County Heritage history, on the Thompson-Cox Family, says that Elizabeth Asher was born in England in 1809, died in 1890 and is buried at Farmington. However, it also says that her son Anthony was born in 1813, so she couldn't be his mother. If anyone has information on the Farmington Cemetery, I would appreciate verification that she is buried there. I have only summarized the information available on the family. I would take great pleasure in sharing information with anyone interested in the THOMPSON family history. I still need to do a great deal more research at the Family History Library. I am also trying to become more familiar with the genealogy resources available on the Internet, which of course is how I found this Fulton County site. It's a wonderful opportunity to link up with others who are researching Fulton County families. Herb Blue 1423 South 1000 East Salt Lake City, UT 84105 801-467-6460 herbblue@aol.com