Little History About The Maryland to Kentucky Reunion
In 1785, a group of families from the southern Maryland counties of St. Mary, Charles and Prince
George formed a "league" pledging to migrate to Kentucky. Reasons for this move were
varied. Economics may have played a large role in this westward movement, with the depletion of
available land in Maryland and the after-effects of the constant plundering by the British during the
Revolutionary War. Certainly religious freedom was a likely concern to many of these
pioneers. After a century of anti-Catholic bias in Maryland, many were seeking freedom to openly
practice their faith. John Carroll, the Bishop of Baltimore told them that if they would settle together
he would do what he could to supply them with priest. True to their word, these pioneers largely
settled together in what today are the three Kentucky counties of Nelson, Washington and
Marion. Even now this central Kentucky area is known far and wide as the Kentucky Holy Lands.
As land further west opened up for settlement, some of these same pioneer families again packed up
and headed out seeking a better life for themselves and their families. Many from this group seemed
to have agreed to once again settle together. This led to many sister communities of this same
group all across the western part of the United States.
The idea for this reunion originated in 1988 during the course of a Buckman, Leake and Montgomery
family reunion in Monroe City, Missouri. It was thought that it would be wonderful if people who had
for many years researched these families by mail and phone calls could at last meet, sit down
together and share more family information. The idea bore fruit in 1990 when the first Maryland to
Kentucky reunion was held at Nazareth, Kentucky. It was such a success that we knew that it had to
be repeated. A gracious offer came from St. Mary's County Maryland asking us to please come back
to our ancestral home in 1992. In 1994, Cape Girardeau and Perry County, Missouri rolled out the
red carpet for us which was followed by a 1996 meeting at St. Charles and Lebanon in Marion County,
Kentucky where our keynote speaker was the Historian Laureate of Kentucky, Dr. Thomas D.
Clark. A video of the Maryland to Kentucky migration was made available. Owensboro, Kentucky in
Daviess County fired up it's renowned barbecue pits in 1998 and we were thrilled to hold our
millennium meeting at Leonardstown, St. Mary's County, Maryland in 2000.
The 2002 reunion was held in historic Washington County, Kentucky, site of the third Maryland
settlement at Cartwright's Creek in 1787. We met on the grounds of Saint Catharine Motherhouse
and College on June 28-30. Other events took place at the Dominican Proto-Priory at Saint Rose,
dating from 1806.
On July 16 - 18th, 2004, the reunion was held at Hannibal, Missouri.
great hospitality of St. Mary's Co., Maryland.
In 2006 the group enjoyed the
The reunion draws genealogists from all faiths and we welcome anyone with interest to join us for a
weekend that has to be called a researcher's delight. We usually have somewhere in the
neighborhood of 500 to 600+ researchers attending along with their families from more than forty
states. The entire weekend is all about sharing and forming bonds. It is indeed a very special time
and one you should not miss. Please make plans to attend now!