The Berlin Family :: Bible Records

Photocopied pages from a Berlin Family bible were received from Patricia (Berlin) Miller in January, 1995. She identified it as the bible of John D. Berlin. Patricia is a descendant of Solomon Berlin, son of John. She had no idea who had possession of the family bible. I can only wonder where it might be but am thankful to have copies of these pages.

[BIRTHS]

Familien Register.
Geburten.

John D. Berlin was born Dec. the. 8.,1792

Susannah Berlin was born March the 9 D 1804

Solomon Berlin was born May the 26 D. 1827

Catharine Berlin was born May the 21 D 1830

Lydia Berlin was born Feb the 22 D. 1832

Josiah Berlin was born June the 24th 1834

Jacob Berlin was born September the 30th 1836.

Mary Ann Berlin was born October 17th 1838

Sarah Berlin was born December 25th 1840

[Note: the following three are in a different handwriting.]

Elisabeth Berlin was Born April the 28th 1843 -

Lovina Berlin was Born the 8th of May 1845

J. Milton Berlin was Born the December ..7.. 1848

[MARRIAGES]

Familien Register.
Gterbefálle.

John D. Berlin was married to Susannah Huffman Feb the 16th 1826

[DEATHS]

Familien Register.

Gterbefálle.

Mr. John D. Berlin died Nov 11, 1879 aged 86 yrs, 11 mo and 3 days

Mrs. Susan Berlin died Apr. 22, 1880, aged 76 yrs, 1 mo and 13 days

Joseph Milton Berlin youngest son of John and Susan Berlin, died May 22, 1856, aged 7 yrs, 9 mo, and 16 days.

Jacob Berlin was killed in battle of Shiloh Apr 7, 1862, aged 25 yrs, 6 mo, and 7 days.

Josiah Berlin died March 27. 1869 aged 35 years 2 months 20 days

Solomon Berlin died Sept 22, 1872. aged 45 yrs 3 months 26 days.

Catharine Berlin Richmond died Nov 15th 1903 age 73 - 5 months 24 d

[Note: The next two names are in a different handwriting.]

Lydia Berlin Woodruff died May 17th 1913 aged 81 yrs 2 months 26 d

Sarah Berlin Greene died April 22d 1916 aged 76 yr 3 months 3 days

[Note: And in yet a different handwriting.]

Elizabeth Berlin Coppes died Feb. 19. Feb. 1931 at home in Nappanee and buried at So. Union Cemetery Locke.

Mary Winder died July 20 – 1933

[Note: Lovina Berlin Yarian died May 3, 1932 but her death is not listed.]

The Sisley Family Bible

In May of 1986 my mother and I went on a research trip to Ohio and Pennsylvania. One of our stops was Fayette County, Pennsylvania. All I knew at that time was that my 4th great grandmother, Indiana Sisley, had been born in Fayette County and had married Conrad Stem. It was in the Land Records that I found the names of her parents and siblings. Her father, Lewis Sisley passed away in 1826 and in 1834 the eldest son, John, purchased his father's land. Lewis' wife Margaret was named, as were all ten of the children, and their spouses if they were married, including "Conrad Stein and Indianee".

Fast forward to 1999 and the wonders of the Internet! There I found the Sisley Family website and the reproduction of a history compiled and published in 1974 by Paul and Edith (Sisley) Bongiorno. I contributed the information I had on my "Western Branch" as they called it. Then, as often happens when one connection is made, another comes along. In June 2000 I was contacted by Marge, a descendant of Amberson Sisley, the youngest child of Lewis and Margaret.

Emails flew back and forth. It was an exciting time, even more so when I learned that they lived less than three hours away, on the south side of Indianapolis! And that Marge had family pictures and documents, including the pages from the family bible! Less than three weeks later we met, spent the day together, got to know each other a little, exchanged information, and I had my first scanfest ;-) The bible pages were fragile but we all decided it would be a good thing to go ahead and scan them.

I was, and still am, amazed and thankful that the bible pages survived at all. And I will forever be indebted to Marge for allowing me to touch them, to feel the texture of the paper, to hold something in my hands that my ancestors had held 175+ years before.

Births [First Column]
Lewis Sisley son of Jacob and Jane Sisley was born July 22. 1765.
Margaret Ellis daughter of Nathan and Mary Ellis, and wife of the said Lewis Sisley was born Dec. 13th 1773.

Births [Second Column]
Births. Of the Children of Lewis Sisley and Margaret his wife
Mary Ann was born December 31st 1789.
Nancy was born May 11th 1792.
Hetty was born Dec. 21st 1795.
Eleanor was born October 4th, 1797.
John Ellis was born April 13th 1800.
Louisa was born April 9th 1803.
Ruhama was born September 19th, 1805
Indiana was born May 18th, 1809.

Births.
Wilson Smith was born Dec. 3. 1811.
Amberson Evans was born Dec. 18th 1814.

Deaths.
Louisa Nutt departed this life August 12th 1823.
Lewis Sisley departed this life February 14th 1826 aged 60 years 6 months and 25 days

[Note: all of the entries up to this point have been in the same handwriting]

Eleanor Lyons died March 15th 1861.
=====
Amberson E Sisley died Feb 16th 1862
=====
Margaret Ellis Sisley died February 13th 1870


Marriages. [first column]
Lewis Sisley and Margaret Ellis were joined in marriage November 4th 1788.
Mary Ann Sisley was joined in marriage with Samuel Shelpler January 3d. 1809.
Nancy Sisley was joined in marriage with Morgan Morgan Jany 18th 1809.
Hetty Sisley was joined in marriage with James M'Crory July 25th 1812.

Marriages. [second column]
Eleanor Sisley was joined in marriage with Robert Lyon September 4th 1819.
Louisa Sisley was joined in marriage with Samuel Nutt Dec. 28th
Ruhama Sisley was joined in marriage with Samuel Nutt July 29th 1824

Note: Louisa Sisley and Samuel Nutt were married on December 28, 1822. She died on August 12, 1823. Samuel then married Louisa's sister Ruhama.

Another Note: At this point is where the marriage of Indiana and Conrad Stem should have been recorded! Was the family bible "put away" after the death of Lewis Sisley, which occurred in 1826? The recording continues in a different handwriting.

Wilson Sisley was joined in marriage with [crossed out and started over]
Wilson Sisley was joined in marriage with Nancy Wells September 11th 1836.

This post was contributed to the 55th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy: Show and Tell
See also Indiana Sisley Stem :: Show and Tell

Records from the Joslin Family Bible

It is not known who has the Lysander Joslin family Bible. Or even if it still exists. Thankfully, on February 7, 1895 the family information was written down by Andy Joslin. And sent to my 2nd Great Grandmother Malissa Joslin Brubaker.

There are two sets of transcriptions. I believe that the first two pages were written by Andy. And the last three appear to be written by Malissa. But I'm not sure. Compare the writing to that in this post and see what you think. The first transcription may have included a page of marriages but, if so, it is now missing.

Page 1

Malissa you will see that you got some of the names misplaced but you can see the dates are all right
Elcy died before Mary Jane
Ester died before Lilian

Page 2

Lysander P Joslin was born May first 1825
Lydia Joslin October 10, 1825
Ann E Joslin was born November 8, 1844
Mary Jane Joslin was born July 20, 1846
Elsy E Joslin was born August 5, 1847
Malissa M Joslin was born June 24, 1849
Luther M. Joslin was born January 2, 1852
Roxie A. Joslin was born April 4, 1853
John L Joslin was born November 30, 1855
Esther Joslin was born September 3, 1857
Minerva F. Joslin was born January 7, 1859
Andrew H. Joslin was born May 30, 1860
Lillian A. Joslin was born April 20, 1862
Ida Blanch Joslin was born July 11, 1863
Mandella Joslin was born December 9, 1866
Elmer & Elmus Joslin was born June 4, 1868
Mary Jane died March 21, 1850
Elsy Ellen died March 9, 1850
Lillian A died September 20, 1863
Ester died November 5, 158 [sic - 1858]
Elmer died June 30, 1868

In this second transcription, which I believe was written by Malissa, some middle names are included. There is one more name in the list of deaths: Ann Eliza Klingaman died July 28 1885 and the second page is a list of marriages.

Lysander Joslin & Lydia Robison were married Aug 23. 1843
Anna Eliza Joslin & Wm Klingaman was married Oct 12th 1865
Malissa Joslin & Wm Brubaker was married April 20 1871
Roxie Joslin & Jacob Parkison was married May 30, 1874
Luther Joslin & Dorothy Elliot was married Feb 1876
Minerva Joslin & Wm Knight was married March 1876
Ida Blanch & John E. Dressler was married. 1882
Della Joslin and Downa Quillen was married July 1883.
Andrew Joslin & Minnie Himes June 1st 1891
Elmus Joslin & Katie Kelly was married May 1892

In the middle of the third page that lists the deaths is the notation:
"This is the record of Father's family taken from the family bible Febyary 7, 1895 by Andy Joslin."

And, upside-down at the bottom of that page is another marriage:
John L. Joslin & Mattie --- was married September 29 1890

For additional information on this family, please see the following posts:

• Lysander and Lydia Robison Joslin
• Children of Lysander and Lydia Joslin
  

Charles Wiseman Family Bible

The Charles Wiseman Family Bible was given to me in January 2004 by Kent Scott, a grandson of Susanna Wiseman Scott (1850-1938). Susanna was a sister of my great grandfather Samuel Bray Wiseman (1855-1944). They were the children of Charles and Naomi Bray Wiseman of Switzerland County, Indiana. Charles (1815-1895) and Naomi (1824-1908) had three other children: Albert (1852-1853), Henry Weir (1859-1946), and Charles, Jr. (1861-1937).

At the time of the death of his grandmother, Flora Kiesel Scott, in 1970, Kent discovered an old carriage trunk in the attic of her home filled with old dresses, feed sacks, newspapers, and at the bottom of the pile, the Wiseman Family Bible. After looking through the Bible, Kent asked his father who was Susanna Wiseman? His father said Susanna was his grandmother and she had died in 1938. His father had kind memories of her while growing up on the farm. He said even later in life she still ruled the family with an iron hand but a gentle spirit. Upon his father's death in 1996, the bible came into Kent's care, and he vowed to return it to a member of the Wiseman family.

First contact was made by Phil Wilcox, Kent's brother-in-law, when he found Susanna Wiseman Scott in my WorldConnect database in December 2001. We corresponded off and on for several months but, for various reasons, it wasn't until January 2004 that Kent and I finally connected. For the cost of shipping, Kent offered to send me the Bible. I was hesitant because he was also a Wiseman descendant. But he wanted it to be with someone with the Wiseman name. So, of course, I accepted his offer!

"The Latest Illustrated Polyglot Family Bible" was published in 1872 by C. F. Vent, New York and Cincinnati. There was no dedication page so we don't know to whom it was presented or when. However, the family record pages give the birth dates for Charles and Naomi and their children written in "fancy" script, possibly inscribed at the time the Bible was presented to them, assuming it was a gift. One puzzle is a "Memorandum" page that has the inscription: "Josephine Ederington was born August 24th 1865." I don't know who Josephine is but she was listed in the household of Charles and Naomi in the 1870 census, aged 5 years old (Craig Township, Switzerland County, Indiana p267). She's not mentioned in either of their obituaries.

The Bible is not adorned in any way nor does it have any colorful engravings, but it does have some very nice black and white lithographs. The cover and spine are completely detached, it's musty smelling, some of the pages have brown spots on them, and some of the pages have separated from their binding, but it's a priceless family heirloom.

At the very back of the Bible were two pages containing a dozen photographs. Some are cartes de visite pictures, but most of them are tintypes. Only one has a possible identification. Tintypes were introduced in 1853 and the carte de visite came along about 1860. I promised Kent that I'd post the pictures, that was three years ago. Better late than never. . . I'll be posting those pictures here with the hope that someone can help date them if not identify them.