Siler Family Holds America's Oldest Reunion for 175 Years

When 187 people gather at a middle school in Franklin, North Carolina, they don't call it a reunion. To the Silers, it's a meeting, and it's been happening without interruption since 1853.

The Siler Family Meeting celebrated its 175th gathering on August 1st, welcoming relatives from across the globe to Macon County. Family members traveled from Switzerland, Spain, Argentina, and a dozen U.S. states to honor a tradition older than the Civil War.

This isn't just any family get-together. The Siler gathering holds the title of America's oldest continuous family reunion, surviving wars, the Great Depression, multiple epidemics including COVID-19, and nearly two centuries of change.

The meeting follows the same format their ancestors established in 1853. An antique hand-carved gavel calls everyone to order, officers are elected, minutes are recorded, and motions are voted on like a corporate shareholders meeting. Then comes the potluck, where everyone brings enough food to share.

Between the business and the eating, there's singing. "Blest Be the Tie that Binds" echoes through the room as cousins of varying degrees celebrate new births, marriages, and remember those who've passed. The Siler name marks the landscape of Western North Carolina, with multiple mountain peaks bearing family surnames thanks to a 19th-century cartographer who once roomed with the family.

Sunny's Take

What started in remote mountain coves near Franklin has grown into a global gathering that proves some traditions deserve protecting. These meetings have weathered every challenge America has faced, powered by nothing more than family commitment and a shared potluck lunch.

The meeting traditionally draws up to 300 descendants, all connected by bloodlines stretching back nearly two centuries. This year's 187 attendees needed Macon Middle School to accommodate everyone, a upgrade from the original homestead gatherings.

As the meeting closed with their traditional song "Till We Meet Again," plans were already underway for gathering number 176. Some traditions don't just survive—they thrive because people choose to show up, year after year, generation after generation.