Chambers-Lee-Randolph County AlArchives Bible Records.....McGinty, William Pitts Family Bible ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/al/alfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Jerry McGinty http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00021.html#0005198 July 29, 2010, 12:56 pm File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Jerry McGinty http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00024.html#0005770 September 25, 2023, 3:29 pm [[New Info added by Jerry McGinty September 25, 2023 The William Pitts McGinty family bible was donated to the Cobb Archives, Bradshaw Library in Valley, AL in 2003. It was published in 1851. it measures 9X11 with 768 pages, old and new Testament, and is very fragile]] William Pitts McGinty Family Bible This family bible was located in October 2003. It is owned by Shannon McGinty Bartlett of Smyrna, GA. She is a descendant of John Franklin McGinty who was the son of William Pitts McGinty. The bible passed to John Franklin and then to his son Rowland and finally to Shannon. She sent the bible to me. It is a major discovery for McGinty researchers. The bible is a large book measuring 9x11 inches and is 3.5 inches thick. It contains 768 pages covering the old and new testaments. The bible was originally bound with embossed brown leather and is now in extremely fragile condition. Pages one and two are missing. It was published between 1851 - 1852 by Alden, Beardsley & Co. in Auburn, NY and Wanzer, Beardsley & Co. in Rochester, NY. This was a popular bible at the time and identical bibles have been located in the possession of other families. There is a page titled Family Record listing all of the children of William Pitts McGinty and their birth dates as follows: Lucintha Elvira McGinty was born October 27th 1844 James Madison McGinty was born Sept. 30th 1847 Theodosia Burr McGinty was born April 24th 1849 Tabitha Ann McGinty was born May 24, 1851 Willey P. McGinty was born Jan 22, 1865 Nancy Laura McGinty was born Oct. 11th, 1853 John Franklin McGinty was born August 13, 1855 Thomas Jefferson McGinty was born March 5, 1858 Wm. L. McGinty was born Aug. 23, 1859 G.W. McGinty was born February 13, 1862 Mary Reese McGinty was born September 8, 1868 Andrew J. McGinty was born Dec the 2, 1872 There is also an entry showing that Thomas Jefferson McGinty died at birth on March 5, 1858. There was also a page showing Marriages but it has been removed. There is a small portion of this page remaining with a notation in the margin that “James Madison McGinty written this (month unreadable) 2nd, 1867.” To the right of this notation there is a W and below this is written Ann and below this you can see an F. This is the first entry at the top left corner of this page and no doubt records the marriage of William Pitts McGinty to his first wife, Mary Ann Freeman. Several letters and other notes were found between the pages of this bible. They include: A letter from T. B. (Theodosia Burr) McGinty written to her brother, James Madison McGinty, January 15, 1872. She was living in Tallapoosa Co., AL at the time. A letter from G. W. (George Washington McGinty, Jr.) and wife M.A. (Mary Adeline Davis) to his brothers and sisters dated September 11, 1862. It was written from his home in Morehouse Parish, LA and addressed to P.H. (Pinckney Harrington) McGinty. A letter from L. E. (Lucinthia Elvira McGinty) Fallin to her sister T.A. (Tabitha Ann) McGinty written March 10, 1867. It was written from her home in Tallapoosa Co., AL. A listing of items, names of purchasers and proceeds from what appears to be an estate sale in Chambers Co. dated January 3, 1870. James, W.P. and Washington McGinty are shown purchasing many items. This could have been the estate sale of Penelope Moore, wife of Levin Moore. A small note to Miss Tabitha McGinty “at home” dated August 6, 1874. There are no words here, just numbers. A receipt to W. P. McGinty for payment of $50 to a Mr. Mcanelly(?) dated January 5, 1865. It is signed by J.A. McGinty. This is probably James A. McGinty (1846-1885), son of Robert A. McGinty, the brother of William Pitts McGinty. A summons from the State of Alabama, Chambers Co., for William P. McGinty to appear in court and give testimony for the State in the case of The State of Alabama vs. William K. Fredrick. It is dated April 7, 1866. A small slip of paper with letters of the alphabet written over and over by J. M. McGinty (James Madison) as he practiced learning to write the A, B, C‘s. There is a Family Record sheet showing the birth and marriage John Franklin McGinty and the birth of his three sons, Rupert, J. Roy and Rowland. This page is not part of the bible. This page is much larger than the bible pages. It was inserted into the bible by the John Franklin McGinty family. There is a poem written “For a Friend” with a heart drawn on the reverse. It appears to have been written to someone with the initials M. T. P. A small envelope addressed to Miss (?) Hand(?) “by the politeness or Mr. (?). The envelope is empty. A pressed flower about four inches long of unknown variety. The inside cover of the bible contains a few names scribbled by some of the McGinty children. Mollie Mc, Theodosia, William and some other unidentified marks are there. Across the top of this page is a pencil entry that reads, “Recd of W E Pulmer $31.60 Feb 5 1876 corn from J.M. Mc 14 ½ bushels.” The information contained in the bible clarifies some of the prior research. Tabitha is shown as being born in 1851 but previous research shows 1850. Mary Reese “Mollie” McGinty is shown as being born in 1868 but her gravestone shows a birth date of 1875. Also, the bible entry shows Reese where previous research shows the spelling as Reece. This is an extremely important find in McGinty research. Consider that this bible was used by the entire family of William Pitts and was in their home before the Civil War and for many years there after. Because of it’s size, and their strong religious orientation, it would have occupied a prominent place in the home. His children grew up with this bible. Some of the items found in the bible show that it was also used for filing other important papers. It is hoped by the author that this bible and it’s contents will be donated to an appropriate archive for preservation and the benefit of future researchers. Gerald K. “Jerry” McGinty October 6, 2003 Additional Comments: William Pitts McGinty, born 4 Jun 1819, in Wilkinson Co., GA. Moved to Chambers Co. with his father in 1835. Died in McGinty, AL. 1 Jan 1901. Buried in Fairview Cemetery, Valley, AL. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/al/chambers/bibles/williamp125gbb.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/alfiles/ File size: 6.6 Kb