Our Family's Bible

I love this Bible.  It is an amzing piece in our family's history. Published in 1881, it belonged to Grandma's family, the Millers.

After Daddy died, this was one of the items in a box of his personal belongings that was given to us girls.  At the time, none of us knew who the Millers were, so the Bible came to live with me, the sister most interested in our family heritage.

I had a vague recollection of Daddy saying that Grandma's mother died when Grandma was really young and that she was raised by a step mother.  So after some research, I discovered that this Bible belonged to the Miller family: Grandma's maternal family.

On these pages, we find recorded our great-grandmother, Ethyl Miller, the dates of her birth, marriage to John Cooper, and date of her death.  

John Cooper and Ethyl Miller were married May 19, 1900 in Pulaski County, Kentucky (Somerset). John was 27. Ethyl was 18. The 1900 Federal Census was taken in June 1900 and lists John and Ethyl living with John's parents.

Their first child, Byon, was born August 23, 1900. Their next child, Tony, was born August, 1903. Our Grandma, Bessie Cooper, was born March 15, 1906. Sadly, Ethyl died September 25, 1907, reportedly after suffering from tuberculosis.  Grandma didn't remember her at all.

John W Cooper and Ethyl Miller Cooper

I am working on fully documenting this family line.  A few of the facts I've discovered include that they immigrated from Germany and their last name was originally Mueller.  Frederick served during the Revolutionary War and in his pension papers states that his father was killed by Indians.  I'll provide their complete story after I finish collecting documentation.

Until then, this Bible rests with me as a responsibility.  A responsibility to Daddy and to Grandma to research, record, and tell the story of their family history.  A history that we wouldn't have known about had it not been for our family's Bible.