The first reunion of the descendants of Jacob Hay (1818-1882) and Sarah Philpps Hay (1818-1897) was held September 19, 1937, at Miller Park, Bloomington, with fifty members present. Mrs. Priscilla Hay, Leroy, was the oldest at 90 years of age, and Donald Eugene, son of Mr. and Mrs. Troy Copley of Farmer City, was the youngest at ten months of age. The reunions continued until 1986, when the decision was made to disband because of small attendance.
Jacob Hay was born in Pennsylvania on December 16, 1818. He married Sarah Phipps in 1837. They lived in Bellflower and had five children. Most of the Hay family is buried in the Bellflower Township Cemetery.
The Hay Family Reunion Collection is comprised of four spiral-bound notebooks with minutes and financial reports of the reunions from 1937 until 1986. Folder 1 includes family information on Jacob Hay and Sarah Phipps Hay and newspaper clippings about some of the reunions.