LITTLE RIVER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
& CEMETERY, ORANGE COUNTY, NC
THE ALLISON CONNECTION
Little River Township in North Carolina is beautiful. There is a calmness that fills my soul; a feeling of family. This is the area where my ancestors settled prior to 1755.Standing amid the headstones I get a sense of the area in which they lived and the legacy they left for us.
The Little River Presbyterian Church and Cemetery was established in 1761.
Joseph Allison, my 5th Great Grand Uncle, was a Charter Member of Little River Presbyterian Church. His grave is recorded, but unmarked. Joseph came south from Pennsylvania to North Carolina with his brother John (my 5th Great Grandfather) and their Mother Grizzell Wray Allison. Joseph and his family remained in the Little River and Hillsborough area as did my 5th Great Grandfather John Robert Allison SR. John Robert died in March of 1796 in Hillsborough, but I have been unable to locate his grave. John SR did much buying and selling of land on both the Little & Eno Rivers in Orange County. Much of his personal lands were on the Eno and there is where he settled. John Robert Allison JR (son of SR -Revolutionary War Patriot) moved his family to Tennessee where he died in 1842 and is buried close to where I live in Putnam County, Tennessee.
The Little River Presbyterian Church is one of the three most important early churches of Orange County; the others being The Old Eno Presbyterian Church (1755) and The Old New Hope Presbyterian Church (1756). As the numbers of Presbyterian families increased so did the need for a church and in 1761 the Little River Presbyterian Church was built between the north and south forks of Little River. This was known as the Allison's "home" church. I spoke with the pastor of the church, and he said there are many Allisons that attend the church and many live in the area.
Little River Presbyterian Cemetery
has over forty documented Allison burials.
Pictured below are a few of those ancestors.
ALLISON TRAIL
Less than half a mile from the church and cemetery is Allison Trail. As I was driving down the path, I wondered if my ancestors had traveled the same path. I am sure they did. There was an older home and a few new homes near the end of the trail.
It truly is a beautiful place - spiritual, calming.
The Old Eno Presbyterian Cemetery, too, has lots of ancestors.About a 15 minute drive between cemeteries.
Photos from my last visit to Eno Cemetery in 2021
Not far away from the cemeteries is gorgeous Hillsborough.
The town of Hillsborough is the county seat of Orange County, North Carolina, United States and is located along the Eno River. The population was 6,087 in 2010, but it grew rapidly to 9,660 by 2020. Its name was unofficially shortened to "Hillsboro" during the 19th century.
Hillsborough’s Historic District
The Museum was quite the adventure.
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