The beautiful cover of the Bible is engraved
To William & Sarah L
from her father E. N. H.
That last initial on the cover was difficult to read but we are confident that it is an H for the following reasons:
The Bible includes a section called Marriages which states
William Shackford
and
Sarah L Harris
at
St John New Brunswick
October 20th 1852
Also, William Shackford's pension records which are available at Fold3 include a questionnaire returned by William to the Pension Office. Three of the answers are:
"No. 1. Are you a married man? If so, please state your wife's maiden name.
Yes, wife died, Sarah Lincoln Shackford, Maiden name Sarah Lincoln Harris. Died October 2nd 1897.
"No. 2. When, where and by whom were you married? Answer: October 20th 1852, St Johns Brunswick, Dominion of Canada. By Rev Edward Harris, wife's father."
No. 3. What record of marriage exists? Answer Marriage Certificate and in the Records of the City of St John N B, and of Eastport, my native town."
We have not yet found copies of William and Sarah's marriage records but although the Bible was gifted to the newly married couple 1 1/2 to 2 years after their marriage we are comfortable that the date of marriage is reflected correctly in this Bible because this date is also recorded in William's pension records.
We believe Sarah's father was Edward Nathan Harris, a Baptist and Universalist minister who was an 1837 alumni of the Theological Seminary Andover, Massachusetts. A summary of his career was found in the 1908 General Catalogue of the Theological Seminary, Andover, Massachusetts where he is buried. This summary does not show him at St Johns, New Brunswick but the Edward N Harris or E N Harris frequently wrote about his church in St John, New Brunswick, Canada in the period 1850-1856 and the 1851 New Brunswick Census shows an Edward N Harris, age 45 born in Nova Scotia in New Brunswick, with a wife Sarah Harris and an 18 year old daughter Sarah Harris born in the United States. The following other children are listed: Harriet Harris, age 16, Marry Harris, age 11, Charles Harris, age 9, Ann Harris, age 7, David Harris, age 4, and Agnes Harris, age 1. We would love to learn more about Edward's other children.
ALUMNI 1837
...
Edward Nathan Harris (1834-37) b. Cornwallis, N. S. July 23, 1806;
ord. (Bapt.) 1826; p. Lubec, Me., Calais, East Machias 1825-34;
(Univ.) Methuen, Mass. 1838-39; ed. and prop'r S. S. Contributor
Lynn 1839-40; res. Boston 1841; p. (Bapt.) Broadway ch. Balti-
more, Md.; First Baptist. ch. Germantown, Pa. 1875-78; Mariners'
ch. Philadelphia; d. Jan. 26, 1880
SOURCES
1851, Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, populatin schedule, page 5, ; digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestryinstitution.com : accessed ).
Find A Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 2 January 2015), Rev Edward Nathan Harris, Find A Grave Memorial# 92377421
General Catalogue of the Theological Seminary Andover, Massachusetts 1808-1908 (Boston, Ma: Thomas Todd, 1908), page 166; digital images, Google eBooks (https://play.google.com : accessed 7 January 2015
"Pension File William Shackford," digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 9 June 2014), William Shackford.
Shackford William and Sarah L (Harris) Family Bible Records, 1852-????, The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments, Translated Out of The Original Tongues, and with the Former Translations Diligently Compared and Revised (New York: American Bible Society, 1854), Marriages William and Sarah Harris; privately held by Sandra Furman, [address for private use], 2015. William Shackford to Marcia Shackford Furman to one of her sons to their family members
"St. Johns (N. B.) Seamen's Friend Society," The Sailor's Magazine and Naval Journal, March 1853; digital images, Google Books (https://books.google.com : accessed 1 January 2015
Copyright 2014 Joanne Shackford Parkes