Often, a story that appeared in The Graham Star some time ago will bring a response from someone seeking information about it.
This was the case of a story entitled “Early Family Settled Hares Creek,” which appeared in the June 30, 2005 issue of The Graham Star.
The person seeking information is a descendant of the Hare family that settled what is now known as Hares Creek – in the Tallulah area – around 1840.
There was some confusion about the name of this area with some thinking it is Harris Creek. Apparently, this was caused by a sign erected by the state highway department with the name Harris instead of Hare.
However, there can be little doubt that it is Hares Creek. Maps as early as 1920 show it as Hares Creek. Hares Creek also shows up on a number of old legal documents such as land deeds. Several “old-timers” and longtime residents of Hares Creek – such as the late Roy Farr and Gladys Wiggins – said that Hares Creek is the correct name.
Mary Haire and her father Ray Haire (note the difference in spelling) made a number of trips to Graham County, seeking information on the Hares that settled Hares Creek. Thomas Hare is the ones thought to have settled here with most of the children being born in the 1840s. It is thought that they moved to Polk or Monroe County, Tenn. at some point. Roy Farr said the Hares either lived on what later became the Farr property, or perhaps a little farther up the creek.
William Henry “Tobe” Hare is the one that most locals seemed to have known. He moved back to Graham County in the 1930s for a short time and lived in the Sweetgum area of Tallulah.
James Hare was born around 1847 and married Elizabeth Ann Rogers, the daughter of George Newton Rogers and Elizabeth Cabe. They are listed in the 1860, 1870 and 1880 census in what is now Graham County. They had three children; Andrew, Martha E., and William Hare. James Hare’s parents are listed as Thomas and Liner Hare. Emeline Hare doesn’t’ show up in the census until 1860, and is listed as a widow.
The William “Tobe” Hare that lived on Hares Creek was married to Callie Crisp. They had no children. He then moved to Copper Basin, Tenn. and married Isabelle Allen Cheatham, a widow with four children. They had two children of their own, Quentin and Ray Hare, the father of Mary Haire. Quentin visited the Wiggins family that lived on Hares Creek from time to time and spoke of the area being named for the Hares.
Marshall McClung is the historical columnist for The Graham Star. He can be reached via email, mcclungs@email.com.