Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2016

Abstract

The collection at the Cockayne Farmstead is eclectic, to say the least. Ranging in age from Adena arrowheads to a 2001 calendar, it is difficult to characterize the nature of the home’s archival holdings. However, amidst a plethora of nineteenth century correspondence, books, and printed ephemera, one item stands out as being particularly special. Within the collection is a Bible printed in 1775 on the Cambridge University Press in England, complete with a hurriedly scrawled listing of family birth and death dates on the back of the title page. This brief listing demonstrates how books were used for purposes far more diverse than simply reading. How a family chose to use a Bible provides unique insight into understanding the inner lives of the men, women, and children who used it.

Comments

Copyright © 2016 Ohio County Public Library. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

Download

Share

COinS