This Bible, printed in 1830, was apparently originally owned by Robert and Mary Stewart. It passed to their son Walker Stewart and his wife Sarah Spears Stewart, then to their daughter Amanda Stewart Green, and finally to her daughter Myrtle Green Hardman. The Bible was in the possession of Myrtle Green Hardman in 1972 when her son, Edgar Hardman of Gadsden, Alabama, made a transcript. In a letter to me dated 6 May 1979 he wrote that the Bible had been destroyed in a house fire shortly after he returned it to his mother.
Edgar Hardman had previously written on 11 May 1972 that the Bible in the possession of his mother was “almost disintegrated and some of the records are very dim.” On 22 June 1972 he provided the following three-page typewritten transcript. Some entries were not completely readable, and his parenthetical notations on several others are reproduced below in italics.
The earliest entries were evidently made by either Robert or Mary Stewart, who wrote the surname as both Steward and Stewart. Mary Stewart likely kept the Bible until her death in 1852, when it came into the possession of her son Walker Stewart and his second wife Sarah Spears. Since Walker Stewart could not read or write, we presume that the later entries were made by Sarah Spears Stewart. According to Myrtle Green Hardman, her grandmother Sarah Spears Stewart kept the Bible until her death in 1907.
Note that the entries are not in strict chronological sequence, and that several are repeated. The parenthetical comments are Mr. Hardman’s.
Births1
John Robert Stewart was born Nov. 1, 1834
George W. Stewart
Walker A. Stewart was born Aug. 27, 1819 (?)
Sarah Stewart was born July 30
John Stewart was born Sept.
Mary A. Stewart was born Jan. 11, 1853
Samuel M. (or W.) was born March 22, 1855, died Dec. 29, 1855
Gracy Stewart was born March 29, 1857
Julia Ann Ellen Stewart was born March 23, 1866
Manda Emile Jane Stewart was born March 23, 1866
Margaret G. Stewart was born June 15, 1867.
Byron M. Stewart was born Sept. 16, 1860.
Samuel B. Taylor was born Feb. 4, 1892
_______ Taylor was born March 17, 18842
Sarah J. Wooten was born Feb. 18, 1892
James Pinkney Wooten was born Dec. 22, 1886 (?)
James Justus Wooten was born May 22, 1889
Sarah J. Wooten was born Feb. 18, 1892
William Hicks, son of John and Matilda Hicks, was born in the year of our Lord June 18, 1832
_____ Hicks was born Dec. 20, 1833
Nancy Hicks was born Feb. 2, 1835
Marriages
John and Matilda was married Aug. 18, 1830
Robert Stewart and Julia his wife was married March 19, 1837
Wilson Taylor and Ellen Steward were married Nov. 5, 1882
Byron M. Stewart and Huldah Boyd were married July 6, 1890
Eugene Godfrey Stewart was born Feb. 8, 1893
John J. Wooten and Gracy Stewart were married Jan. 10, 1886
W. Stewart and Sarah Spear were married April 28, 1850 [?]
Wilson Taylor and Ellen Stewart were married Nov. 5, 18823
Deaths
Walker A. Stewart died Nov. 29, 1895
Martha Steward departed this life May or June 13, 1836 [or 1886]
Martin Steward departed this life Jan. 11, 1820.
Robert Stewart departed this life April 9, 1835
Mary M. Stewart departed this life Jan. 1, 1852
Samuel Stewart departed this life Feb. 23, 1855
Martha Brock departed this life May 20, 1885
James R. King and Margrett and six (6) children died Dec. 11, 1888.
Births and Marriages
Samuel Steward and Sarah were married September 1, 1831
John Steward and his wife Polly were married Sept. 6, 1833
Polly Steward, the wife of John was born in the year of our Lord 1813 (Sept. the 9th 1833)
Elijah Hicks (?) was born the year of our Lord Sept. 4, 1836
Amanday R. E. Taylor was born March 17, 1884 (?)
Margaret Bethany Taylor was born March 12 (or 18), 1886
William Walker Taylor was born Aug. ___ and died August 28, 1888 (?)
Matilda Steward was born in the year of our Lord Nov. 4, 1804
Martha Steward was born Jan. 7 (or 9), 1806
John Steward was born in the year of our Lord June 20, 1807
Samuel Steward was born in the year of our Lord May 24, 1809
Mary M. Steward was born in the year of our Lord July 18, 1811
Robert Steward was born in the year of our Lord Dec. 15, 1812
Martin Steward was born in the year of our Lord June (?) 15, 1815
Andrew Steward was born in the year of our Lord June 13, 1817
Lily May Taylor was born Oct. 13, 1889
Mary M. Steward was born in the year of our Lord Feb. 9, 1781
Walker Steward was born in the year of our Lord Aug. 27, 1819
Margret Steward was born in the year of our Lord Dec. 3, 1822
Nancy Steward was born in the year of our Lord Feb. 8, 1826
Lucinda Steward, the daughter of Samuel and Sarah Steward was born in the year of our Lord June 13, 1832
Mary Ann Stewart was born the 10th of Feb in the year of our Lord 1834
Robert H. Stewart was born the 14th of Feb. in the year of our Lord 1836
James Pinkney Wooten was born Dec. 22, 1886
- Three of the first five entries were evidently not completely clear [↩]
- Amanda Rosella Taylor’s name was apparently unreadable. There is a second entry for her birth on the third page of the transcript. Her name and birth date also appear in her sister Lilly May Taylor’s family Bible. [↩]
- This entry appears twice in Mr. Hardman’s transcript with the surname spelled as “Steward” and then “Stewart”. Whether it was entered twice in the Bible is unclear. [↩]