In the June issue of Memphis magazine, I explored the "mystery" of the old tomb sitting on a hill alongside Highway 57 in the heart of Collierville.
There was really no mystery, if you did a bit of research. It covers the final resting place of Hardeman Abington, one of Collierville's first settlers.
Abington's descendants recently wrote me and provided more information about their family:
Dear Vance,
Thank you for your recent piece on our great-great-great grandfather Hardeman Abington (my grandson is the now the 8th generation of Abington blood). As you noted, our family was among the early settlers of Collierville, and many of us continue to live in Collierville today.
Our linage comes down from his second wife, Margaret Blain Abington. We continue to own a portion of the family land that is still farmed today. After the original house burned in 1922 (when our grandmother was 16) there was a new house built right in front of the original home. If you dig around in the yard you can still find the original brickwork and items from the original house get uncovered from time to time after a heavy rain.
Our stepfather currently resides in the home built in 1922; interestingly he is the only husband to ever outlive an Abington woman on that property. After Hardeman’s death the property has been profitably managed by five women. The only other male to manage the property was Hardeman’s grandson (also Hardeman), and sadly it was greatly mismanaged. Thankfully, upon his death his wife took over the management and it once again became a profitable farm, but much of the acreage had been already been sold to pay young Hardemans’ debts. We are still here on the same, albeit a much smaller piece of property.
Michele Griffin Whitehead
Collierville, Tennessee
Thanks, Michelle. An interesting family indeed!
