Collett-McKay Families Hold 86th Picnic

     On the iron clad date, the second Saturday in August, the Collett-McKay picnic was held in the four acre park the families bought as a permanent meeting place for the annual reunion. This is a corner of a beautiful sugar camp woods belonging to Mr. Bernard McKay through which Buck Run flows.
     This year was the 86th anniversary and the usual ideal weather was on hand for the delightful occasion, when 235 registered.
     This has been the meeting place for all the anniversaries since the first one held on Caesars Creek in Warren County. This was just at the close of the Civil War in 1866.
     In 1937 an innovation was made when souvenirs and keep sakes were brought and placed on a table near the register. Pictures of picnics of former years were on display, the first one in 1885 and then on down through the years. The large register already filled is always on exhibit, and McKay family tree and Collett tree of over 600 names, 10 generations with births, marriages, and deaths going back for over 200 years.
     Mrs. Harley Smith (Sarah McKay) who resides on land adjoining the picnic grounds has traced a genealogy. By means of a tremendous amount of research Mrs. Smith has traced many branches of both families to remote European forebears. The two trees that were present on Saturday represent an excellent piece of genealogical work worthy of a professional.
     Mrs. Smith had prepared and had on exhibit an excellent piece of planning and workmanship in a very large frame, a unique arrangement of maps, pictures, clippings, and other things depicting the Colletts and McKays from France and Scotland to New Jersey and Virginia then Harpers Ferry to Pittsburgh down the Ohio and to Warren and Clinton counties; then pictures of churches and meeting houses, burying grounds; homes of the early settlers etc.
     There was also on exhibit a photograph of an oil painting done by Mr. Maurice Collett of New York City of the large mansion of Mr. Daniel Collett in Chester township built in 1842 which is the site of the double log cabin where the Colletts first settled on July 12, 1814.
     The whole day is spent in visiting and many linger until the sun is about to set, then they go home saying "it was the best picnic ever."
     Three hogsheads which are used for water were worn out during the years of the picnics and a new one was purchased for the occasions in 1937 and this year two new ones were brought up from Cincinnati and were in use for the first time.