SMITH—ROBERTS BIBLE, Entries dated from 1792 to 1898
Bible of Sarah (Smith) Roberts (b 1774 NC/SC? – d Tenn.) &
John Roberts (c1770 Va.-1861 Tenn.)

Submitter, transcriber, & current holder of the Bible:

Patricia A. West, wiz [at] websitewiz [dot] com http:// www.websitewiz.com/genealogy/
The Bible fragment consists of pages 581-1080 and pages 1-25 of the Psalms of David in
Metre. The Bible is in fragile condition, with a leather binding only on the spine. The Bible
register pages (pages 677-680) were professionally restored—de-acidified, cleaned and
strengthened— and the Bible was placed in an archival phase box in 1994. The transcription of the Bible was published in Middle Tennessee Genealogy, Vol. VI, No. 3, Winter, 1993,

p.103-4. (Note two corrections made after the Bible was cleaned in the transcription below to the printed version.) Tennessee Ancestors: A Publication of the East Tennessee Historical Society, Vol. 9, No. 3, December 1993, pp. 207-8, also printed this record. The Bible transcription appears on the web site of www.websitewiz.com/genealogy/, along with additional family information and more Bible register transcriptions.

Surnames in the Bible:

Gilbert
Roberts
Foster
Ingland//England/Ingold/Inglold
Moore
Gibson
Smith
Morton

Newspaper Clipping Found Inside the Bible Pages, undated, but before 1898 when
Mrs. Rachel (Roberts) Gilbert died. The clipping shows how the Bible was passed down
through the family. On a trip to Tennessee in the 1950s, Morton-Gilbert cousins gave the
Bible to Alice Eugenia (Kirkland) West, d/o of Gertie B. (Morton) Kirkland, b 1892 in Lincoln
Co., Tennessee, and Patrick G. Kirkland. Gertie Kirkland descends from three of John Roberts
and Sarah (Smith) Roberts’ daughters, below. Alice Kirkland West gave the Bible to her
daughter, Patricia A. West, the transcriber.

Transcriber’s comments

Verbatim transcription:

“R.A. Wagster, of Chestnut Ridge, [Lincoln Co., Tenn.] has an heirloom in his family that is
highly cherished. It is an old bible. It was first purchased by his great great grandfather, Jack
Smith, [1752-1816] who in turn handed it down to Rason Smith, [b 1781, brother of Sarah]
who in turn handed it down to his [refers to R.A. Wagster] great grandmother, Sarah
[Smith] Roberts. She left it to her daughter, Rachael Gilbert, who gave it to Mr. Wagster for
Smith-Roberts Bible, 1792-1898 Transcribed by Patricia A. West 8/15/2015 Page 2 of 4
safe keeping. Mrs. Gilbert, Mr. Wagster’s grandmother is a very old lady, now living near
Chestnut Ridge [Tenn.], and delivered this book to her grandson, knowing it would be
properly preserved by him and kept in the family as a reminder to the rising generation of
the love for the book by their ancestors.” [Mrs. Gilbert died in 1898.]

Bible Record Transcription

Transcriber’s comments
Verbatim transcription:
First page
page 677

Births

Sarah M. Gilbert was bornd April 21, 1834 [married William C. Morton; d/o John Gilbert and
Rachael Roberts Gilbert; see below for repeat]
[Next entry is too faded to read]
Mary An [Ann] Gilbert was bornd August the 11, 1835
Atemisia Gilbert was bornd December 1 + 1836 [?yr]
A.B. Gilbert was bornd march the 23 + 1838
John C. Gilbert was bornd march the 8, 1839
Marriages [includes births]
Rezin Roberts was married September 11, 1826

[the following 2 Roberts are children of Rezin Roberts, son of John and Sarah (Smith)
Roberts:]
John Roberts was bornd November 13, in the year 1827
Ailcy Roberts was bornd December 18th in the year 1829

Sarah Morton Gilbert was borne April the 21, 1834 [married William C. Morton]
Second page
page 678

Births

[all 12 Roberts children below are proved to be siblings & children of John Roberts and
Sarah Smith Roberts:]
Elisabeth Roberts was born july the 26th 1792 [m. John England]
Mary Roberts was born october 11 —-1794 [dashes there signify no omission] [m Samuel
Moore]
William Roberts was born october the 19th 1796
John Roberts was born December the 25th-1798
Juten [or Justen ?] Roberts was born November 29th 1800 [Juten/Justin has the same birth
date as Peter Roberts, as per his tombstone. They may be the same person or they
may be twins]
Nancy Roberts was born December the 23-1802 [m. James Littleton Foster in Nov 1820]
Reason Roberts was born february the 19th-1805 [also spelled Rezin]
Susannah Roberts was born june 23-1807 [m. John C. Morton]
Sarah L. Roberts was born february the 18-1810
Smith-Roberts Bible, 1792-1898 Transcribed by Patricia A. West 8/15/2015 Page 3 of 4
Rachael Roberts was born March the 7-1812 [m. John C. Gilbert]
Artamecy Roberts was born october the 18, 1814
Lucretia Roberts was bornd october the 7 in the year 1820 [m. D.A. Gilbert, brother of John
C. Gilbert]
[The following Foster children are chn. of Nancy Roberts & James L. Foster:]
William Foster was bornd 27th of November in the year 1822
Sarah Foster was born March the 25 in the year 1824
Joel Foster was borne September the 24 1825 [he is the 3rd child of James Littleton and
Nancy (Roberts) Foster]

Third page
page 679

Births

[The following Ingland//England/Ingold/Inglold children are chn. of Elizabeth Roberts, b
1792, & John England:]
Sarah Inglold bornd July 22—1813
Mibndy? [Malindy] Ingland bornd March 7th—1815 [she married Absolem Williams]
Jonathan Ingland was bornd February 15, 1817
Tilman Ingland was bornd may the 20th 1819
Martin England was borned July the 8th in the year 1821
[Moore chn. are probably chn. of Mary Roberts and Samuel Moore; can’t prove marriage
yet]
Henry Moore was born January the 21 [or 27]th in the year 1823
Addaline Moore was bornd August 13 in the year 1824

Deaths

Elizabeth Gibson diseasd on the 2 day of March 1815 [?1816]
Elizabeth Smith diseasd on the 6th day of March 1818 [this entry has a single line crossed t
hrough it; her cemetery record shows her death as 6 Mar 1816; Elizabeth and John
Smith Sr. are the thought to be the parents of Sarah Smith Roberts. They moved to
Bedford Co., TN from Pendleton District, South Carolina, in 1810.]
John Smith diseasd March ________ [Cemetery record of John Smith Sr. shows his death as 12
Mar 1816; John Smith Jr. d. 3 Mar 1816. [Apparently, the Smith parents and this son
died from a common illness.]
Elizabeth Smith diseasd on the 6 [?] day of March 1815 [see note above]
William Foster diseasd December 22d in the year 1822
Gerard? borned January (?) in the year 1824.
/ / Fourth page
page 680
Deaths [actually births]
Newel England was born February 15th 1826 [before page cleaning, appeared to be 1896]
Sally Moore was borne April 23d 1826
John Foster was born September 22d 1827
Susannah Moor–[ink blot & crossed out]
Susannah Moore was born July ___[ink spot] 1828
Rezin Morton was borned November the 2 in the year 1849
Deaths
[Too faded to read about half of column]
Smith-Roberts Bible, 1792-1898 Transcribed by Patricia A. West 8/15/2015 Page 4 of 4
[page 680 continued]
Artamecy Roberts departed this life April the 3rd in the year 1882, age 67 years, 5 months
and 15 days
Rachel Gilbert departed this life August 2, 1898. Aged 86-4-25
—End of Transcription—

About The Roberts—Smith Family:
John Roberts Sr. was born ca 1770 in Virginia, according to the 1850 census, migrated to the
Carolinas and moved to Bedford Co., Tennessee with his children before 1815. His wife,
Sarah (Smith) Roberts was born 1774 is the d/o John Smith Sr. and his wife Elizabeth, who
both died, along with their son John Smith Jr. in March 1816. The Roberts children and
grandchildren lived in Bedford and Lincoln Co., Tennessee. I descend from three of the
Roberts daughters:
1. Susannah Roberts Morton, b 1807; [m John C. Morton]
2. Rachel Roberts Gilbert, b 1812; [m John C. Gilbert]
3. Lucretia Roberts Gilbert, b 1820; [m D. A. “Doc” Gilbert]
D.A. Gilbert and Washington A. Gilbert, were brothers, and s/o Rev. John Gilbert.
Numerous descendants still live in the Bedford/Lincoln Co., Tennessee area.
Sources for transcriber’s comments:
1. Will of John Roberts included in Thomas Dysart et al. V. Rachel Gilbert et al., Chancery Court Decree, 28
September 1868, pages 53-55, Chancery Court, Bedford Co., Tennessee.
2. Census, deed, probate, cemetery and newspaper records from Bedford Co., TN and Lincoln Co., TN, and
another Morton – Gilbert Bible record in possession of Patricia West.
3. Documented family relationships sent to me by John Foster of Winchester, TN, the late Bessie D. Morton of
Nashville, TN, the late Bessie Morton Spencer of Nashville, Tennessee, and Carolyn Reeves Ericson of
Nacogdoches, Texas—all descendants of this family.