A couple from Rochester Hills, Michigan, recently discovered a family Bible dating back to 1851, including cards, letters, and marriage and death certificates.
According to Faithwire, Larry and Joyce Schramm discovered the Bible when cleaning out an abandoned semi-trailer on their property, where they own a storage facility. The Bible was also found wrapped up and protected, unaffected by rainwater and mold.
“It’s amazing how old this book is,” Larry told FOX 2 Detroit. “It was a neat find.”
At the time, the only clue the couple had was that the Bible had the last name Wendell.
In June 2023, Larry delivered the Bible to Fox 2 Detroit, where they could get in touch with a woman in Arizona, Chrys Wendell. According to Wendell, the Bible belonged to her father’s side of the family.
“My grandparents were antique dealers, and my father had this semi with everything in it. And when he passed away, his friend said he would handle it and get rid of everything in there for us, but obviously he didn’t,” she said. “I (didn’t) even know that the bible existed, so this is all news to me.”
Wendell noted that she had been attempting to learn more about her family history and that the Bible offers her some much-needed detail.
“Once you get older like me, you start going, ‘Oh well, where’s my family? Where are we from?’ So I did that DNA test, and I found a lot of relatives on my dad’s side that I didn’t know because they had so small of a family,” she continued. “My only connection was my dad, really – to find out family history.”
“My dad would be proud that you guys found this Bible,” Wendell said. “That would bring him much joy.”
The Bible has since been sent to Wendell in Arizona.
“It belongs with family, and that’s where we’re happy to have it,” Larry said.
Photo Courtesy: ©Getty Images/robynmac
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
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