The Page Family Bible

WRITTEN BY RETA PAGE BAILEY BARTELL MONTICELLO, UTAH
MARCH 30, 1980

I am Reta Page Bailey Bartell, daughter of Robert Geary Page and Dora Halterman Page. My father's mother was Sophia Ann Geary Page ---- my grandmother.
In the early 1920's, when I was about sixteen years old, Grandma Page came to visit us in Pleasant Grove, Utah. She had with her a family bible that had been passed down to the oldest child in each generation --- for many generations.

The back of the bible had been torn off and the leaves were charred around the edges. Grandma wanted my father to take her to Salt Lake City to have the bible re-bound. He took her to the Deseret Book Company where they made arrangements for this work to be done. Grandma stayed with us in Pleasant Grove until the book was finished.

The bible had been published in 1629. The following is quoted from the fly leaf:
Quote:
"The Holy Bible, Containing the Old Testament and the New."
"Newly translated out of the original tongues, and with the former translations diligently compared and revised by His Magisties special command. To be read In the Churches."
"Printed by Thor and John Buck, printers to the University of Cambridge."
End of Quote.

When they brought the bible back from Salt Lake City, Grandma gave the bible to my father, because he was her oldest child. With the bible was a family seal depicting a musician's lyre with an olive branch across it, and the words: Harmony and Peace, written around the outer rim. The seal was made of Cornelian Agate in A gold setting. This seal had accompanied the bible from generation to generation. In those days important documents and letters had to be carried and delivered by hand. Sealing wax was used to seal the documents or messages. While the wax was still warm a family seal made the "family stamp" in the warm wax. When the wax hardened, the document or letter could not be opened without disturbing the sealing wax. This insured privacy in correspondence. With the seal and the bible were two blue and white plates resembling "Blue Willow" plates.

On the back of each plate was the name George Jones England

My father, during the remaining years of his life, impressed upon me the importance of these gifts from his mother. He des~red that, upon his death, the bible, seal, and plates be given to me, because I was his oldest child.

My father passed away on Nov. 6, 1945. After his estate was settled, mother gave the bible, the seal, and the two blue plates to me. They have remained in a safety-deposit box in the First Security Bank at Monticello, Utah until this time.

As time went by I realized that I knew very little about the history of the four precious items in my care. Father had written a few words/on a scrap of paper and place it inside the fly leaf of the bible. This is a copy of what he had written:

Quote:
"Salt Lake City Jan. 6th, 1929 Sunday
"Joseph and I want to Sunday School this morning. He will enter the Mission home in the morning, to prepare for his mission. Dear (mother) and he went to Fast Meeting this afternoon. His Farewell program will be tonight.

"This seal has been handed down to the oldest child in the family for many generations. I wish it to continue. It belongs to Reta when I am thru. These little shoes were made by my Grandma Geary when she was a little girl.

"This seal is pure gold, and is hundreds of years old. "Was brought from England by my Great Grand Parents. "I humbly pray the blessings of the Lord upon all my loved ones."

(signed) Robert G. Page
End of Quote.

I have had this scrip of paper laminated and have placed it in the bible where he left it.

I realized in 1974 that if I was to learn anything more about the bible I had better get busy and contact father's only sister with whom the family had k~pt in contact. So, on Sept. 27, 1974 I took my mother, a tape recorder, tapes, and genealogy family record sheets to Farmington, Utah to visit with my father's youngest sister, Golda Geary Page Smith. I made a tape recording of our conversation concerning the bible. I also made copies of some of her sheets of genealogy. I will enclose a transcript of that tape with this account.

I have decided to make a Pedigree Chart tracing the eight generations that we know who have (or will have) owned the bible and seal; and the ten generations through which the blue plates have descended.

On Sunday, March 30, 1980 I will present the bible, the seal, the blue plates, the pedigree chart, the transcribed tape, and this account to my oldest son, Kenneth Rone Bailey. In time they will all go to his son, Jeffrey Shumway Bailey - then to his daughter, Page Bailey.

My desire is that they be passed on to the oldest child in each generation in tnis same manner. Each owner may add any pertinent information to the collection if they so desire.

Affectionately,
(signed. Reta Page Bartell)
Reta Page Bailey Bartel

1629 Geary Family Bible

John Thomas Geary and Sophia Fryer

Copy (above)of marriage entry for John Thomas Geary and Sophia Fryer married 26 August 1852. The Copy of Marriage Entry was obtained from the General Register Office, Application No. 926307/1, in the Registration District of St. Saviour, Surrey, England, 10th day of February 2009. Copy in possession of Kaye P. Nichols.

JOHN THOMAS GEARY LIFE HISTORY

IMPORTANT NOTE: Current family research by Kaye P. Nichols has clarified many of the details contained in the biography below. Kaye's detailed findings are included in a report written in 2009. It is recommended that all family members read this important paper which sheds much new light on the family histories of John Thomas Geary and Sophia Fryer.

JOHN THOMAS GEARY LIFE HISTORY
Written in 1967 by Golda Geary Page, as told to her by Sophia Ann Geary.*

John Thomas Geary was born February 5, 1823 in Atterton, England to Thomas Geary and Sarah Ann Elton. He was educated in seven different languages besides his own, which was English. He practiced Law in all of them. He was a Lord, and was Speaker in the House of Lords in London, England.

He was married August 27, 1852 to Sophia Fryer, daughter of Moses Fryer and Eliza Miller who were of a very old and respected English Family of the Isle of Wight, England. The day these two were married they led a parade of both the Geary and the Fryer families through the streets of London, Everybody was out to see this newly married pair. It lasted for three hours.

Not long after they were married a couple of Mormon Elders, Parley P. Pratt and one other came to their door. When the butler found out they were Mormons he told them Grandfather did not want to hear anything they had to say. So they left. Grandfather had heard part of what was said, so he called the butler and asked him who those men were. The butler told him and Grandfather asked him to please go and bring them back for he wanted to talk to them. He asked the butler to never turn anyone like that from his door again. When they returned, they were led in to Grandfather's Study where he welcomed them and they spent a very pleasant two hours together.

For awhile Grandfather attended LDS meetings alone, at night. He would then tell Grandmother all about it. It was not long before they were both baptized. They always said that this is what they had waited and hungered for all their life. When it became known that John and Sophia had joined the Mormon Church there was terrible commotion. They were turned out into the street without a single copper in their pockets and they were both disinherited by the Geary and Fryer families. John and Sophia went to the Elders and the Saints for help. The Saints made them welcome and took them into their homes. Grandfather had to disguise himself in every way that he could, he even shaved his head and had to keep under cover because he was hunted just like he was a fugitive.

When the excitement had finally died down a bit Grandfather left Grandmother with the Saints and he made his way to Liverpool where he was again given a home and protection by the Saints. He obtained a job at night, working on the docks, helping to load and unload freight on the big ships as them came in and went out. Finally, when he had earned enough money he sent Grandmother to America with a group of converts. She came to America with Sophia’s sister, Jane Fryer and brother, Richard who married Thersa Ann Revel April 7, 1861, also came with them. Because they were Mormons and might be put off the ship or be prosecuted they had to be careful. One time a sheriff and police came on board and searched their baggage but could find no identification to show that they were Mormons.

John stayed and worked until he had enough money to get him to America. He came on the ship “Jersey” and while on ship he did all kinds of jobs to earn as much money as he could. He kept no journal of the trip but had a pleasant voyage. It took three days and nights to clear the English Channel and six weeks to make the trip across the ocean. They had a death and two births on voyage. He arrived at Belees, America February 15, 1853. The ship was towed across the bar to the Mississippi River and soon was gliding up the river. It took two day to reach New Orleans. They saw Negroes strutting around as big as life. They had separate living quarters for men and women. The next day the saints put their luggage on the “John Simonds” and they left at dusk to go up the river. The scenery was different than they had ever seen before, steamers going up and down the river and Negroes at work on the plantations. They passed thick long woods and now and then was a large piece of farm land with a bustling little town by it. It took six days to go up the river. They stayed at St. Louis for six weeks and John got a job working for $1.00 a day. He bought a wagon and cattle and camped with 1200 other saints in wagons and tents. They organized their companies and he was in the last company to leave with Captain John Brown. They reached council Bluffs on the Missouri River on July 17, 1853 and had to stay for a time for his wife was ill.

It took he and Grandmother three years to make their way to Utah. This was a real test. They had to live on roots, bulbs, bark off the trees, needles from the pine trees, berries and the leaves from scrub Cedar trees, or just about anything they could find. Aunt Echo was born in Echo Canyon as they were coming into the Salt Lake Valley on the 26th of November 1856. In Grandfather's diary he said that the snow at that time was in drifts 18 feet deep and all that they had for Grandmother and that sweet baby was a little straw in the wagon box with a quilt over it for a bed and not too much to cover them with. The wagon cover was so old that it kept them busy mending it the best they could. But with the help of the Lord they got along fine and Aunt Echo lived to marry and become the mother of two fine sons.

When they arrived in Utah, Brigham Young sent them to Dixie and Grandfather was one of the first men there to raise cotton. He was the very first man who ever taught school in Toquerville who did not whip the children. In 1866 he moved to Salt Lake City, while there he wrote his last will and testament and died there January 5, 1867.

So far as we know, Grandfather was the only one of his family to join the Mormon Church. One of Grandmother's brothers and his wife, and a sister and her husband joined the Church later on and came to America.

No one will probably ever know or realize the heartbreaks and hardships they endured but with the help of their Lord, they died as they had lived true as steel to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As long as I live I shall tell how grateful I am for my grandparents who came to Utah for the sake of the Gospel. I know as they knew, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Later day Saints is the only true Church on the earth. This I bear as my testimony to you.

*This story is (from memory) as my mother, Sophia Ann Geary, told it to me.
Date: Jan. 8, 1967 Name: Golda Geary Page Smith