Seward family to celebrate 100th consecutive reunion on Aug. 20 in Ursa

URSA, Ill. — The 100th consecutive Seward family reunion will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 20, with the dinner scheduled to begin at noon. Ursa Farmers Co-Op, on Highway 96 north of Ursa, will be the setting. Fried chicken and drinks will be provided with plates, cups and utensils available. Family members attending are asked to bring a covered dish to share.

Seward family descendants have been gathering to celebrate shared lineage since 1924. Determined to gather despite the pandemic, they held the 97th reunion virtually using Zoom to keep the streak alive and returned to an in-person gathering in 2021.

Samuel and Lucy Ann Ross Seward traveled in the 1840s by wagon from Ohio to Lima Township near Bear Creek in Illinois. Samuel and Lucy intended to come in the spring, but Lucy was expecting her first child, Melissa, so they postponed the trip. They eventually began their travels the following winter with Melissa in tow and made it as far as Hardin before winter conditions stopped their journey.

Fortunately, a local farmer let them stay on his property if they harvested his potatoes. They spent the rest of the winter there before traveling on to Adams County. Samuel and Lucy went on to have 13 more children besides Melissa, and it is primarily their descendants who have gathered each third Sunday in August since 1924. 

On Aug. 17, 1924, 98 ancestors, mostly descendants of Samuel and Lucy Ann Ross Seward, got together for a basket dinner at the Dick Anderson farm near Ursa. Of Samuel and Lucy’s 14 children, Clinton Seward, Emeline (Emma) Seward Bronson, Lucy Ann Seward Wilson and Samuel Seward attended that first reunion. Parents Samuel and Lucy had passed away by then as had nine of their children. Caroline Seward Fry was still living but unable to attend.

Guests arrived early and set up blankets, tables and chairs. The entire day was spent eating, catching up with each other and showing off horseshoe and baseball skills. In the afternoon, they treated themselves to ice cream, cake and lemonade.

Fast forward 100 years later, and the Sewards are still going strong.

Organizers are requesting people attending bring old pictures, quirky family memorabilia or newspaper articles they may have stashed away.

For this 100th reunion, organizers are also requesting a RSVP to ensure enough fried chicken is ordered. Reach out to Leah Dawn Shupe at leahdawns@yahoo.com, call or text her at 602-319-2174, or call or text Jill Deege at 217-242-2652. Individuals can RSVP on the Family Seward Reunion Facebook page under Events/100th Seward Reunion/Going.