4
afternoon she told me that in her heart she had always
remained a firm, Bible-reading Methodist.
Raised in the Missouri boot-heel, Lillie had a solid,
basic education. She married into a family where higher
education--with the exception of her husband, my
grandfather, was the rule. Regardless of the most unwelcome
welcome she received from Mac’s family, it was mostly
Thomson stories that filled those late afternoon visits. One
story was about Georgetown.
Season followed season and the family stories were
mostly forgotten. Then my brother Chuck became
interested in tracing his roots. As I remember, he was not
getting very far very fast. He regularly brought the subject
up at various family gatherings. Then….
Why we were together is beyond recall. That Chuck
brought up the subject of family roots was routine. But on
that day, the this-and-that of our collective memories
dredged up the Georgetown story. Thus began my own
journey into family history. Was there truth in the
Georgetown story?
T
HE
G
EORGETOWN
S
TORY
As Grandma told the story, a Thomson ancestor was
very influential in helping Bishop John Carroll finance and
build Georgetown University. In gratitude Bishop Carroll had
decreed that his sons (it was a male college) and his