Family Record

Died [Handwritten]

Mary Emma Beerbower

June 29^th 1880 Aged

9 weeks, 5 days

Brightwood, Ind.

[Anna Missouri & Edgar P. Beerbower’s daughter born April 22, 1880.]

Mrs. Anna Springsteen

April 17 1887 aged 64 years

Cairo Ill

[Anna Missouri’s mother, Anna Conner, wife of Jefferson Springsteen. Died while staying with her daughter Anna Missouri.]

Willie Beerbower died

Feb 15 1889 at Cairo Ill.

[Son born the day before, Feb. 14. Anna was about 35 when she had Willie.]

Robert Warson Beerbower

Died Sept 17^th 1900 Denver Colo

Wednesday 2 a.m.

[First son who was b. 1874; only 26 years old at death.]

Roberta Pearl Beerbower

Rob’s little baby born Oct 16^th– 1900     Tuesday

Indianapolis Ind

522 Buchanan St.

[Daughter born to Robert Warson Beerbower, child of Anna Missouri- this is NOT a death! Roberta was born about a month after her father died. She lived to be 91, and she was a close cousin to Mary Helbling McMurray during the 30s and 40s.]

Ed. P. Beerbower

Died Jan [20?] 1916     Thursday a.m.

Burial Monday Jan 24, 1916   Lot #202 Sec 32

Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Ind.

[Edgar P. Beerbower, husband of Anna M. Beerbower, b. 1849.]

NOTE: Miscellaneous papers from the Beerbower Family Bible will be posted 1/6/15 and 1/7/15.

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Beerbower family bible.

2) Springsteen and Beerbower Family Group Records compiled over many years using bibles, census, and other data.

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images.

Copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

Transcription:

Marriages

Family Record 

Edgar Beerbower To

Anna M. Springsteen

Feb. 12 1873

at 117 Spring St.

Indianapolis Ind

By Rev. Hanford A. Edson

[Bible owners.]

Anna May Beerbower

Gerard W. Helbling

Thanksgiving Nov 24-04

St. Alphonsus (Rock Church)

8 a.m. Rev. Father T. Clark

[Daughter of Anna Missouri and Edgar P. Beerbower, on Nov 24- 1904.]

Edgar S. Beerbower to

Rosabel K. Hoppe Oct. 19- 1905

St. Louis, Mo.     Thursday

[Edgar Springsteen Beerbower, son of Anna Missouri and Edgar P. Beerbower.]

Robert W. Beerbower

Josephine Ruffle   Aug-23,

Indianapolis Ind.

[Robert Warson Beerbower, son of Anna Missouri and Edgar P. Beerbower.]

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Beerbower family bible.

2)Springsteen and Beerbower Family Group Records compiled over many years using bibles, census, and other data.

3) Edgar Peter Beerbower was called, “Ed” and I have seen him listed as “Edward.” Being that Edgar became a family name, I lean toward his name being “Edgar.”

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images.

Copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

Family Record

[Christenings]

Robbie  Eddie   May- BeerbowerUrbana Ill

Baptized Sep 1883 Griggs House

by Rev.Miller Methodist M-

[Robert Warson (b. 1874), Edgar (b. 1876), and (Anna) May (b. 1881), children of Anna Missouri and Edgar P.]

Anna M. Beerbower Baptized

Nov 1^st 1885 By Rev

McNutt. Presbyterian M.

[Probably Anna Missouri Springsteen Beerbower, bible owner, since daughter Anna M. already baptized.]

Anna Beerbower

Became a member of

the Co Presbyterian Church

Feb 30 1887

Rev. M[?]

[Probably Anna Missouri Springsteen Beerbower, bible owner. Likely in Cairo, Illinois.]

Roberta Pearl Beerbower

Christened Nov. 4^th Sunday 1900

by Rev. Mr. Hunter Pastor Prec[?]

522 Buchanen St.

Indianapolis Ind.

[Grand-daughter of Anna Missouri and Edgar P., and daughter of Robert Warson Beerbower & Josephine Ruffle.]

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Beerbower family bible.

2) Springsteen and Beerbower Family Group Records compiled over many years using bibles, census, and other data.

3) Note nickname of “Eddie” for Edgar Springsteen Beerbower.

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images.

Copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

“Jany 19 -74” may indicate that Anna Missouri (Springsteen) Beerbower began recording family events in the bible received from her father on that date. We also know that any dates that occurred before the date of presentation, 31 December 1873, may be subject to error, although most information has been verified with a few exceptions that will be noted.

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Beerbower family bible.

2) Springsteen and Beerbower Family Group Records compiled over many years using bibles, census, and other data.

3) Edgar Peter Beerbower was called, “Ed” and I have seen him listed as “Edward.” Being that Edgar became a family name, I lean toward his name being “Edgar.”

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images.

Copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

The year 1866 must have been a year of a big collective sigh in what was again a United States of America. The strife of the Civil War was behind the country, although the personal, physical, financial, and emotional wounds still festered; they would heal some with time. The Beerbower family bible was printed that year, but we have no information on its whereabouts prior to its presentation in 1873.

The bible is inscribed,

“Presented to Anna M. Beerbower by her Father.

Dec 31st   73″.

Unfortunately that page seems to be missing in my scans, but one of the scans has some of the information below:

The date is listed in my transcription from long ago, but I do not know why there is no scan with that page. Another item to investigate in my spare time…

Anna Missouri Springsteen was married 12 Feb 1873 to Edgar Peter Beerbower.  The bible was a gift from her father, Jefferson Springsteen (1820-1909), at the end of that year, as her married name was inscribed in the first pages.

Upon Anna Missouri’s death, the bible was passed on to her daughter Anna May, and then to her daughter, Mary Theresa Helbling McMurray. Names included are BEERBOWER, SPRINGSTEEN, HELBLING, HOPPE, RUFFLE,and CROZIER; the majority of the family lived in Indianapolis, Indiana. The bible was copied and transcribed in 1995, then the transcription was revised and annotated in 2008, all by Anna Missouri Springsteen Beerbower’s great-granddaughter (yours truly).

I do not believe the above is the handwriting of Anna Missouri Springsteen Beerbower- in upcoming posts you may note the different style of “M” and “B” on this page as compared to early entries in subsequent pages. I am not a handwriting expert, but this looks like the writing of a little girl. I am wondering if this is the handwriting of her daughter when young- Anna May Beerbower Helbling. The second style of handwriting in later pages also differs from this, and does look like other examples we have of Anna May’s handwriting.

Sometimes it is hard to remain objective as a family historian, as my mind wanders to what might have taken place between people, daydreaming about the circumstances: the who, what, where, why, when, and how of an event. Looking at this information as I write it, I wonder why the bible was a gift at the end of the year, and not a wedding gift or Christmas gift. Christmas was much less lavish back in the 1870s, and the Panic of 1873 set off a six year depression so money was probably tight. Thin budgets might explain it being an older bible- maybe used or a clearance sale item? Since the family record pages were not written in, even if it was a used bible, it was very gently used over those seven years before it came into Anna M.’s possession. It may even have been an extra family bible owned by Jefferson and his wife Anna Connor, as we also have their Springsteen family bible pages. (Those will be posted soon.)

I do find it curious that it was given to her by her father, and her mother, still living, was not mentioned. But that would have been consistent with the times, a wife/mother being on the sidelines with all owned and given by the male head of the family.

Back to the circumstances- why was the bible given on Dec. 31, 1873?

Trolling through records of both families, mind open to seeing new connections, the flash of understanding occurred- Robert Warson Beerbower, the first child/son of Anna M. and Ed Beerbower’s, was born 16 Jun 1874. That was six and a half months after the bible was presented. My mind leapt to the idea that Anna had announced her pregnancy about the end of December, when signs of her pregnancy became evident and she knew she might carry to term in the days of pregnancy being a dangerous condition. (Pregnancy still is dangerous- the US has an embarrassingly high infant and maternal mortality and morbidity rate.) Delving further into the information known about her siblings, I realized that two others were married prior to the bible presentation date in 1873, but none yet had children.

So we can’t say for sure, but I surmise that the bible was a gift from a father to his daughter, on the occasion of his first grandchild preparing to come into the world. How touching, and how wonderful to have an idea about the possible circumstances of the bible presentation.

Pages from the bible will be presented with their transcriptions in upcoming posts.

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Beerbower family bible.

2) Springsteen and Beerbower Family Group Records compiled over many years using bibles, census, and other data.

3) Edgar Peter Beerbower was called, “Ed” and I have seen him listed as “Edward.” Being that Edgar became a family name, I lean toward his name being “Edgar.”

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images.

Copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.