Bondurant Family Association2026 Bondurant Family Association Annual Meeting
Bondurant, Wyoming
June 26-29
The BFA Annual Meeting in Wyoming was a great success. 32 Bondurant cousins came together in Pinedale, WY for our annual business meeting and Meet & Greet on the evening of June 26. On Saturday, June 27, rainy weather ruined some of our plans as our outdoor picnic on the Little Jennie Ranch was cancelled due to expected rain. In spite of this setback, we had a great time. We heard history presentations at the Museum of the Mountain Man, visited the Bondurant Cemetery, 14 brave folks walked to the Bondurant Homestead in a rain storm, and we finished with a nice evening at the Wind River Brewing Company. On Sunday, we attended the Bondurant Picnic which came off without a hitch despite an expect rain storm. Some made the trek to Granite Falls and its Hot Springs, others made the drive up Skyline Drive to see Lake Fremont and the Wind River Range. We concluded our 3-day meeting with dinner at the Lakeside Resort on Lake Fremont on a beautiful evening.
For all the details see our dedicated Bondurant meeting webpage.
2027 Annual Meeting - Madison, IN
Next Year's BFA Annual Meeting will be held in Madison, Indiana on October 8-9. This is a beautiful town set on the Ohio River near Cincinnati and Louisville. Established in the early 1800s when Americans were migrating from the east looking for new opportunities in the West. Our meeting will be at the Fairfield Inn Historic Eagle Cotton Mill. Stay tuned for more information in coming months.
For more information about Madison, Indiana
Welcome to Historic Madison, Indiana!
The Founding - Introduction to Madison, Indiana An Overview of the Ohio River Valley
From the President
Grandma Oma Elizabeth Burroughs Thorpe (1883-1966) at the 1952 Thorpe Reunion. Her children behind her are (L-R) June, Janet, Patty, George, Bill, Jack, Shorty, Liz, and Jane. Courtesy of Bruce Ramsdell.
This year’s reunion in Bondurant, Wyoming, was glorious, made so by both the sweeping landscape and the new Western Cousins met. As we toured the old Bondurant homestead, disposable ponchos pulled tight against the cold rain, my mind drifted off to the plight of my own Bondurant Ancestor, Grandmother Oma Thorpe. She was the granddaughter of Ruthe Cleopatra Alvatine Bondurant, whom you may recall I wrote about a few issues ago in “Visiting the Greats,” the story of finding Ruthe Cleopatra’s grave. (See BFA #146, Summer 2025.)
Oma, her husband and three of her eventual 11 children arrived in Dubois, Wyoming, in 1914. Dubois lies only 52 miles to the northeast of Bondurant. However, it is on the other side of the Gros Ventre Mountain Range.
This snippet from “Daddy Write It Down” written by my uncle Shorty Thorpe in 1978, predicts that, unlike her Bondurant Cousins in the next valley, the Thorpes were destined to fail in Wyoming.
“When I was 18 months old they again struck out by train for the far west to seek their fortune as pioneer homesteaders near the little town of DuBois, Wyoming, 150 miles from the railroad. Mother occasionally
recalled her conversation with the conductor as they crossed the plains. He inquired of her destination and when she told of their homesteading plans, he commented that he had served many years as a
conductor and ‘First we haul them out, then we haul them back.’ “Uncle Shorty goes on to describe the hardships suffered by the family as they tried to make a go of it – struggles remarkably similar to BF Bondurant’s, though with an unsuccessful outcome! He also recalls the family’s 1926 return to the homestead – now ten strong and driving two vehicles – on a wild July vacation. (My mother was only four months old!) They found their original cabin gone, and a second structure built by another settler dilapidated and abandoned. I suppose they took some consolation in knowing that no one had been able to make a go of it either.
Bruce Ramsdell
President
Celebrating the journey of our immigrant ancestor
Jean Pierre Bondurant From Génolhac to Virginia!
A commemorative t-shirt has been designed to mark the Génolhac Exhibition held in August, and to remember the sacrifices of the Huguenots to practice their Protestant faith during the 16th and 17th centuries in France. This 100% ringsping cotton, pre- shrunk, short sleeve, black t-shirt with white imprint (made in USA) is available from small to 4XL, while supplies last. If you’re not sure what size to get, see the chart of shirt measurements at the bottom of this order form below. Quantity is limited so don’t miss your chance!
Order Your Jean Pierre Bondurant - From Genolhac to America T-Shirt Here.