This is an African American Bible with the oldest dates most of us have seen 
for Africans Americans. The Bible is in the possession of Teana Bryant who 
found it in the papers of her father’s barn after Floyd flooded the area. It 
is falling apart and the front page with the year of publication is gone; 
however, it looks like a late 1800’s early 1900’s edition, far too late to 
have had this information written down as the events occurred. The genealogical 
page is in the same handwriting with the exception of the last entry and all 
of it is extremely easy to read and obviously written by an educated person. 

The later entries were for people who lived in Lenoir County and were related 
to Teana’s aunt by marriage. We ran a query on all the local lists trying to 
determine whom these people were and where they were from and Victor Jones of 
New Bern found them in the Onslow Census. Although Bible entries years after 
the fact are suspect, the Census tends to support these dates and the people 
and their relationships. The Dove family was historically a free black family 
based out of Craven County but they are also found in Lenoir County today and 
probably Onslow.

Teane states - How they came to own this bible is a mystery to me but it was 
passed down to my grandmother by her sister then to my mother, then to my 
father and I retrieved it from the flood of the century (Sand Hill area). I 
have never seen a bible quite this old but it has Greek /Hebrew/ a copy of the 
Moabite stone with inscription in Phoenician alphabet/ all of the ancients 
alphabet- From the earliest to Coptic. I think I have found my 
Shephard/Dove/White connection to Ida McCoy. In the marriage record - Lenoir 
County.

3/21/1917 

D.C. Shephard age 49 to
Ida McCoy 36 

FAMILY RECORD

BIRTHS

Annie Dove born Feb 1st 1811

Susan White born April 1st 1831

George Shepherd born March 6, 1810

Nancy White born Dec. 20, 1859

William White born Aug. 6, 1860

Hester Shepherd born April 15, 1864

Elizabeth Shepherd born June 5th 1865

Ivey James Shepherd born Oct. 22, 1866

Danil Council Shepherd borne May 27, 1868

H. Jackson Shepherd born July 8, 1869

Madison James Shepherd born July 28, 1872

Susan Caroline Shepherd born Nov. 30, 1873

All of the above are in the same handwriting

Chales James Wares Born Oct the 1 1920

Authr (could have been the beginning of an entry for Arthur Outlaw a nephew of Ida)

Liza Dov

MARRIAGES

Almetd Mathew born Mar 1911

NOTE by Teana - Almeta Mathew born Mar. 16, 1911( Was my mother's first cousin)
This bible probably belonged to Ida McCoy Shepherd Battle. Her first marriage was 
to a Shepherd but I am not sure of this. 

From Victor Jones

Martha and others,
It appears the family is in Onslow County. The 1880 Census Richlands Township, 
Onslow County shows George Shephard, 
black, male, aged 79, as a farmer. His wife is Susan 
Shephard, b, f, 40, keeping house. The following are also 
listed:
Nancy J. White, dau, single, female, b, 21 
Hester Shephard, dau, single, female, b, 15 
William White, Son, single, male, b, 20 
Ivy Shephard, son, single, male, b, 14 
Council Shephard, son, single, male, b, 12 
Andrew Shephard, son, single, male, b, 11 
James M. Shephard, son, single, male, b, 9 
Susan C. Shephard, dau, single, female, b, 7 
Henry S. Gentry, Gson, single, male, b, 6 
Adia L. Shephard, dau, single, female, b, 13
I did the search on www.familysearch.org 1880 Census index.
Best wishes, 
Victor
--- 
Victor T. Jones, Jr. 
Local History and Genealogy Librarian 
New Bern-Craven County Public Library 
400 Johnson Street 
New Bern, NC 28560-4098





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