Catherine Martha Stoker

Catherine Eller Stoker is the ealiest ancestor of the Stoker's and Graybill's (excepting son-in-law Michael Graybill Sr.) buried in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery as well as in cemeteries elsewhere in Pottawattamie County and surrounding counties. Her tombstone no longer is to be found in the cemetery. She was born on March 6, 1773, in what is today's Ashe County in the mountains of western North Carolina. Her parents were Peter Eller and Elizabeth Dick who was of Germany descent. Catherine's grandfather, George Michael Eller, was a German immigrant who came to America in about 1742, possibly searching for religious freedom. (See "The Ellers in America," by J. W. Hook.)

Catherine married Michael Stoker, Sr. in about 1791 and they lived in Ashe County, North Carolina, for about 15 years. Catherine gave birth to eight children during that time. The Stoker's and Graybill's moved to Jackson County, Ohio, together in 1814 where Michael and Catherine Stoker's ninth child, Eller Stoker, was born. Five of the nine children are buried in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery.

On January 19, 1833, Mormon missionary Luke S. Johnson baptized several members of the Stoker family into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). By the end of 1833 other Stoker and Graybill family members also were baptized through the missionary efforts of Seymour Brunson and John Fisher. Several years later the Stoker's and Graybill's heeded the call by Joseph Smith to settle in Missouri. The Stoker family moved to Caldwell County, Missouri, with other church members, and they attempted to settle that area. During the next several years the family, along with the rest of the Mormons, was subjected to persecutions in Missouri and the expulsion of the Mormons. The family relocated with the other Latter-day Saints to the state of Illinois. Michael Stoker, Sr. did not make the move from Missouri since he died in Far West, Missouri, in 1836. Catherine and her children fled with other church members to Illinois after the Mormons were expelled from Missouri.

Joseph Smith selected an area of Hancock County in Illinois along the Mississippi River for the Latter-day Saints to settle and named the city Nauvoo. Catherine Stoker and most of her progeny lived in the environs of Nauvoo until February, 1846, when the Latter-day Saints were again forced to flee. The Mormon Trail was established through southern Iowa and terminated in Council Bluffs which served as a staging area for the migration on to Utah. It is estimated that Catherine Stoker died in 1850 and was one of the earliest burials in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery.

There are LDS records that show that Catherine Stoker was baptized for a number of relatives in the Mississippi River prior to the completion of the Nauvoo Temple. After the temple was completed, Catherine Stoker is shown to have received her endowments on Wednesday, January 21, 1846, as recorded on page 163 of the Nauvoo Temple Endowment Register.

On July 30, 1843, in Nauvoo, Illinois, Catherine Stoker received the following Patriarchal Blessing from Hyrum Smith:

"Sister Catherine, I lay my hands upon your head in the name of Jesus of Nazareth and seal you up unto Eternal Life from this very hour for this is thy Blessing for thy days and years are on the decline. Nevertheless there are some more to be multiplied upon thy head and a consolation to inspire your heart yet in the days of your Pilgrimage and you have a crown laid up for you in the Mansion of your Father and ye shall stand in your place and in your station as a Mother in Israel as one that hath kept the commandments and that hath been faithful. Since you believed, therefore you are blessed in time and your blessing shall be continued in eternity, for you are sealed here on earth and sealed in heaven that you may live and be comforted with this comforter that your name is written as is made known by the Spirit in the Lamb's Book of Life and shall not be blotted out, but shall be continued henceforth and forever and there is a blessing on your house, even your children from generation to generation and the priesthood is theirs according to the rights of lineage and the covenants and promises made to their Father Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Therefore, let your heart be comforted henceforth and forever for the promise is sure and your days shall yet continue for a season and your name shall be perpetuated from generation to generation and handed down in honor by your children until the latest generation. These blessings I seal upon your head in the name of Jesus. Amen"

Copied from the original by Emily Jane Graybill; Council Bluffs, Iowa; March 20, 1916.

Children:

Mary Stoker Graybill 1792 - 1864

David Stoker 1795 - 1852

John W. Stoker 1802 - 1857

Michael Stoker 1805 - 1858

Eller Stoker 1816 - 1855

Created by: J. M. Paden

Record added: Dec 03, 2009

Find A Grave Memorial# 45081435

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November 20, 2011....found this information on the following website:

http://melissabrandvoldsancestors.blogspot.com/2010/01/catherine-el...

Thursday, January 21, 2010 - Catherine Eller Stoker

This was written by my dad, Philip Matkin:

As I have researched our family history I have often wondered who our first ancestor was that joined the Church. What year did they join and what was the circumstances of their conversion? I don’t yet have the answer to that question, but it is likely that our first Mormon ancestor would be Catherine Eller Stoker or her husband Michael or one of their children.

This story will focus on Catherine Eller who married Michael Stoker. Let me say at the outset that there is no written story of the life of Catherine Eller (or her husband Michael) that I have found. Beyond the cold hard facts of the genealogical record the supposition and conjecture is drawn from the histories of others and LDS church history. It must be admitted that I have not yet had the opportunity to substantiate all of the facts from the genealogical record that is included in the Ancestral File and IGI which is the main source of the information, and it must be admitted that this source is notoriously unreliable. However, I have through independent research been able to verify a sufficient amount of what is contained in the record to believe that the general assumptions contained in this story are sufficiently accurate that I do not think that any necessary corrections would significantly change the main conclusions that can be drawn from the record.

To give some perspective to this story let’s first find where Catherine Eller is on our family tree. As you know my mother, Grandma Matkin, was born with the name Clara Ackroyd. Her grandfather was Walter Ackroyd who joined the church in Idaho on New Year’s day 1882 and then married Isabell Jane Welker in 1885 after having divorced his first wife. Isabell's paternal grandmother was Elizabeth Stoker, the daughter of Catherine Eller and Michael Stoker (or Stocker). So you see our subject is my 5th great grandmother and approximately the contemporaries of the parents of the prophet Joseph Smith with somewhat a similar history, having been born in the east, moved west, joined the church and then following the course of the church from Ohio, to Missouri, to Nauvoo and then finally to Iowa. The real disappointment in the record is that our subject ancestor was unable to make that final step from Iowa to the Valley. Given her age and circumstance she may be easily forgiven of this peccadillo but the fact that many of her children and grandchildren were also unable to make that step has meant that many thousand of her descendants were denied the blessing of the gospel in their lives.

Catherine Eller lived an interesting and eventful life as her history parallels much of the history of the early church. She was born in Rowan County, North Carolina, on March 6, 1773, the second of nine children born to Peter Eller and Elizabeth Dick.

In a family record that I have from Grandma Ack’s genealogy, which I believe was handed down from Walter Ackroyd or someone in the Ackroyd family, it states the following: “James Welker, son of James Welker (who came from Germany) was born in North Carolina in 1803. He married a Stoker girl, whose mother was a Dutch girl.”

It is that “Dutch girl” who is the subject of this report. The Stoker girl that married James Welker (born 1803) was Elizabeth Stoker. Her parents were Michael Stoker and Catherine Eller. While the statement in that family record is confusing and contains some errors the writer can be forgiven for referring to Catherine Eller as a “Dutch Girl." It is not an uncommon, incorrect description. The Germans from the Palatinate (Pfalz) or the Rhineland who settled in Pennsylvania were often referred to as the “Pennsylvania Dutch” but this is most likely they arrived on ships originating from Rotterdam or because of confusion over the use of the word “deutche” to describe their homeland, or perhaps it has reference to the fact that most of these immigrants probably spent some years at their exit port before being able to arrange passage on a ship to America.

Also, the language they spoke was also a low German with strong Flemish influences. However, the region from which they originated was German and not Dutch. That region is called the Palatinate but our “Dutch girl” was a 3rd generation American. Her paternal grandfather was George Michael Eller who arrived from Rotterdam on the ship “Phoenix” on October 7, 1743 (a copy of his will is attached to this account). Undoubtedly his original home in America would have been in Germantown, Pennsylvania. But he eventually settled in Frederick, Maryland, where it appears that he married and raised his family.

The question as to why George Michael emigrated from Germany is worthy of some note. While there may be some debate as to whether we have correctly tied the emigrant George Michael with any George Michael in Germany, the record is pretty clear that he came from the Palatinate. The Palatinate (or Pfalz) is situated west of the Rhine and north of the French (Alsatian) border. The exact borders of this territory are vague and vary substantially depending on the time period in question (it once consisted of 44 different countries).

During the 1500 and 1600’s the Palatine region was subject to severe religious upheavals and unrest. One of the more radical and severely persecuted groups formed during this time period and in this region were the “Anabaptists” (literally “Rebaptizers”). They believed in adult baptism after a process of demonstrating faith and repentance; were generally pacifists, opposed taking oaths and sought to restore the original Christian church as described in the New Testament (or in some factions the Old Testament).

This religious movement evolved to father the birth of the Hutterites, the Mennonites, the Amish and the Church of the Brethren (or Dunkards). The authorities in the Palatinate saw the adherents to these beliefs as subversives and decided that the Anabaptists should be exterminated. Diaries of some Palatine migrants give horrific accounts of people burned at the stake, fried on flat rocks, chained together and thrown into lakes and other forms of torture execution. One account tells of a woman whose tongue was screwed into the top of her mouth to stop her from preaching.

In the thirty years war and the turmoil that followed the Palatinate seemed to be an area hardest hit in the struggles between Protestants (largely Lutherans) and the Catholics. Combined with this, William Penn visited the region and advertised for colonists to come to America where he promised religious freedom to the suffering Protestants. All of this coupled with an extreme famine and hard winter in 1709 and the great Palatine migration was underway. There are some estimates that between 1710 and 1750 there were as many as 80,000 Palatine refugees who arrived in the United States in general (Pennsylvania in particular).

In my mind there are three possible reasons why George Michael Eller left Germany for America. One popular belief it that he was a Dunkard and as such came to America to seek religious freedom. Another possible reason is that he came to escape political unrest and uncertainty that he faced at home, and the third reason was that he came to America seeking economic opportunities that were not available in the his homeland.

George Michael had nine children, the eldest being Peter Eller. Peter was born in about 1746 (probably in Frederick county, Maryland). “The German community in Frederick Cournty was located in a town of Monocacy. Monocacy was situated at or near the present village of Creagerstown. Here around 1732 the first German church, which was known as the Log Church, was built in Maryland. The Log Church later became the church of Creagerstown and then was replaced by a brick church a few rods north of the old site in 1834. There were several taverns there to accommodate travelers on the Monocacy Road, which was constructed by the governments of Pennsylvania and Maryland. Monocacy Road was an improvement upon the old Indian trail which was formerly used. The road went from Wright's Ferry in Pennsylvania to the Maryland line, then to the Potomac, and then on to the uplands of Virginia.”

Catherine married Michael Stoker (or Stocker) on the 7th of February 1792 in Fredrick, Maryland. While Catherine was born in Rowan, North Carolina. Her father, Peter Eller was the son of George Michael Eller who arrived in America from the Palatinate in Germany. She was married in Frederic, Maryland, to Michael Stoker who was born in Frederick, Maryland.

As I have looked at the records of the Stoker and Eller families, and other connected families, there appears to be a significant connection of families moving back and forth between the communities of Frederick, Maryland, and Rowan North, Carolina. I expect that extended family connections and perhaps connections arising from common ancestry (German) or common religion (probably German Baptist – possibly Dunkards) resulted in a common bond between the Eller's and Stoker's which gave rise to the marriage of these two.

This was not the first marriage for Michael, but it was for Catherine. Catherine and Michael had 9 children; the first 8 were born in Ashe County, North Carolina, and then in about 1814 they moved to Bloomfield, Jackson County, Ohio.

By 1816 their oldest child Mary (Polly) Stoker was married to Michael Graybill, and Polly and Michael and the 2 children they had at that time accompanied Catherine and Michael to Ohio, as did their next son, David, who was then married to Barbara Graybill. Of course her younger children also accompanied their parents to Ohio.

Now the question arises, how did this family and the extended families of their children come to hear of the gospel. Unfortunately I do not know the answer to that question but I do know the following. At the time of Catherine’s death in 1850 she had more than 91 living descendants (including spouses). I am sure the number is larger than that as there are some of her grandchildren who were of marriageable age that I have not yet researched out their marriage and family information. According to my rough estimation all of those descendants were members of the church at the time of her death but only about half of them actually ever made it out of Iowa.

The second mystery in the history of Catherine is what is it that caused her to move with her husband, children and grandchildren from North Carolina to the Bloomfield, Ohio, area in about 1814.

Catherine, her husband, children, spouses and their children stayed in Ohio for about 20 years. During this time period their 3rd daughter Elizabeth married James Welker (my 3rd great grandfather), David married Barbara Graybill, John W. married Electa Sarah McDaniel, Michael married Martha McDaniel; Catherine married Alexander Lacy and then two months later passed away. Jacob married Catherine Burcham and her baby Eller didn’t marry until the family arrived in Nauvoo, Illinois.

By 1836 there is a definite indication in the family records of a close connection with the Mormon church. The last son of Polly and Michael Graybill born in 1836 in Bloomfield, Ohio, was named Sydney Rigdon Graybill, after a prominent Mormon leader. Later that same year Catherine’s husband Michael died in Caldwell, Missouri, which is a settlement that was at that time largely settled by the Mormon people. Caldwell county being the place where the Mormons settled who were driven out of Clay county where they had settled after trying to establish Zion in Jackson County, Missouri.

In 1837 Catherine’s son John W. had a son whom he named Parley P. Stoker, after another prominent Mormon leader. It does not appear that John W. took his family at all to Missouri as he continued to have children in Ohio right up to his 7th child, a daughter whom he named Sophronia, who with the balance of his 11 children, were born in Hancock County, Illinois, except for the very youngest, Rebecca who was born in Pottawatamie County, Iowa, in 1849.

Her son Jacob Stoker had 12 children, the first was born in Caldwell County, Missouri, in the same location and two years after the death of their grandfather Michael.

For the remaining 14 years of Catherine’s life, the record indicates that she and her family followed the unfortunate plight of the early members of the Mormon Church. With at least some of the family attempting to settle in Missouri, and then after being driven out of Missouri they arrived in the Nauvoo, Illinois area, where Mormon church records show that Catherine and her many children and grandchildren were active and full participants in the settling of that region.

The 1840 Quincy census for Adams county, Illinois, (neighboring Nauvoo) shows that it is likely that at that time Catherine was living with her youngest son Eller, his new bride and their new baby girl. After 1846 the family appears to have moved enmass with the other members of the Church who were driven from the Nauvoo region to Council Bluffs, Pottawatamie County, Iowa and the surrounding areas.

From the records that I have seen (including the 1850 Iowa census) it seems not only possible but quite likely that at the time of her death in July of 1850 Catherine Eller Stoker would have been surrounded by 7 of her nine children, their spouses, and approximately 58 grandchildren and undoubtedly a number of great grandchildren.

After her death the family did not seem to stay in as close contact with many of the families remaining in Iowa, a large number settling with the Mormon's in Utah and Idaho and some going to Arizona, California, and Oregon. (Family names, Stoker, Graybill, and Welker.)

APPENDIX A – Will of George Michael Eller

GEORGE MICHAEL ELLER

THE WILL OF GEORGE MICHAEL ELLER

In the name of God Amen.

I George Michael Eller of Frederick County in the province of Maryland living, am for this time sick and not right well but in my sound memory thanks be given to God therefore seeing my nullity, ordin herein my Last Will and Testament in full love. I recommend my soul into the hands of God that gave it and my body to the earth, to be buried in a Christian like manner at the discretion of my Executors, my Executors shall in the first place pay out of my Estate all my just debts, and the over plus what the Lord gave me in this world I ordain as follows with, my beloved wife, Anna Maria I give fifty pounds lawful Money, the small red cow with a white head, thirty bushels of wheat, her bed and her chest she brought to me, also the small and large Iron Potts, a half dozen peuter plates, one peuter bason, a dozen peuter spoons, and a half small melt pan, three iron kettles, small washer tub a water tub and the churn, her spinnin' wheel, her lamp her Bible her psalmody, one quart tin mug and pint do,one quart bottle, and every year fifteen pounds as long as they can live together also her clothing out of my Estate they can agree together, the aforesaid fifteen pounds to be paid to her in the first year only out of my estate, and if they can agree to live longer together, then the six youngest children shall pay her the same by themselves out of my good consideration I caused to be right and is my last Will and Testament that my oldest son Peter Eller, shall have the sum of ninety seven pounds lawful money, and my son Leonard Eller shall have the sum of eighty two pounds and my daughter Elizabeth shall likewise have eighty two pounds lawful money, and these said three children shall have that money three years after my decease then my two Executors, namely Henry Eller and Martin Gerber, shall be impowered to sell the Place, wagon and horses, all the creatures and moveables, and shall pay to my beloved wife her part (and) of the aforesaid three children their part of the same; and the over plus shall be divided by my Executors among my six youngest children namely, Jacob Eller, George Eller,John Eller, Eve Eller, Catherine Eller and Maria Eller; further Jacob Eller shall have the Bible and pay to George ten shillings, also shall Jacob have the young colt, if it mare bring the same liky.

This it is George Michael Eller his mark "x" and Seal X (SEAL)"

Certified, acknowledged and confirmed

This is John Berger's mark X

Henry Schmaus (Smous)

No other Signature

"John Berger's, Henry Smouse the above witnesses were sworn Frederick County, 25th August 1778."

"Then came the above named Thomas Schley and made oath on the holy Evangelists of Almighty God, that the within and above writing is a just and true Translation to the best of his knowledge of the original Will of the above named George Michael Eller, which is written in the German language and that he hath not knowingly or intentionally translated any matter of substance contrary to the true meaning of said Will.

Certified by George Murdock, Registrar.

Will Book G.M., No. 1, page 76, Frederick County, Maryland. Proven by witnesses August 25, 1778.

George Michael Eller and his brother were very close. Henry Eller Sr. and Henry's son-in-law (Gerber) were his executors.

Catherine Eller Stoker is the earliest ancestor of the Stokers and Graybill's buried in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery as well as in cemeteries elsewhere in Pottawattamie County and surrounding counties. Her tombstone no longer is to be found in the cemetery. She was born on March 6, 1773, in what is today's Ashe County in the mountains of western North Carolina. Her parents were Peter Eller and Elizabeth Dick (see "The Eller's in America," by J. W. Hook) of German descent. Catherine married Michael Stoker, Sr. in about 1791 and they had eight children born to them in North Carolina. The Stoker's and Graybill's moved to Jackson County, Ohio, together in 1814 where Michael and Catherine Stoker's ninth child, Eller Stoker was born. Five of the nine children are buried in the Stoker Graybill Cemetery.

On January 19, 1833, Mormon missionary Luke S. Johnson baptized several members of the Stoker family into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). By the end of 1833 other Stoker and Graybill family members also were baptized through the missionary efforts of Seymour Brunson and John Fisher. Several years later the Stoke's and Graybill's heeded the call by Joseph Smith to settle in Missouri. During the next several years the family, along with the rest of the Mormons, was subjected to persecutions in Missouri and the expulsion of the Mormons. The family relocated with the other Latter-day Saints to the state of Illinois. Michael Stoker, Sr. did not make the move from Missouri and it is assumed that he died in Missouri.

Joseph Smith selected an area of Hancock County in Illinois along the Mississippi River for the Latter-day Saints to settle and named the city Nauvoo. Catherine Stoker and most of her progeny lived in the environs of Nauvoo until February, 1846, when the Latter-day Saints were again forced to flee. The Mormon Trail was established through southern Iowa and terminated in Council Bluffs which served as a staging area for the migration on to Utah. It is estimated that Catherine Stoker died in 1850 and was one of the earliest burials in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery.

There are LDS records that show that Catherine Stoker was baptized for a number of relatives in the Mississippi River prior to the completion of the Nauvoo Temple. After the temple was completed, Catherine Stoker is shown to have received her endowments on Wednesday, January 21, 1846, as recorded on page 163 of the Nauvoo Temple Endowment Register.

On July 30, 1843, in Nauvoo, Illinois, Catherine Stoker received the following Patriarchal Blessing from Hyrum Smith:

Sister Catherine, I lay my hands upon your head in the name of Jesus of Nazareth and seal you up unto Eternal Life from this very hour for this is thy Blessing for thy days and years are on the decline. Nevertheless there are some more to be multiplied upon thy head and a consolation to inspire your heart yet in the days of your Pilgrimage and you have a crown laid up for you in the Mansion of your Father and ye shall stand in your place and in your station as a Mother in Israel as one that hath kept the commandments and that hath been faithful. Since you believed, therefore you are blessed in time and your blessing shall be continued in eternity, for you are sealed here on earth and sealed in heaven that you may live and be comforted with this comforter that your name is written as is made known by the Spirit in the Lamb's Book of Life and shall not be blotted out, but shall be continued henceforth and forever and there is a blessing on your house, even your children from generation to generation and the priesthood is theirs according to the rights of lineage and the covenants and promises made to their Father Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Therefore, let your heart be comforted henceforth and forever for the promise is sure and your days shall yet continue for a season and your name shall be perpetuated from generation to generation and handed down in honor by your children until the latest generation. These blessings I seal upon your head in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Copied from the original by Emily Jane Graybill; Council Bluffs, Iowa; March 20, 1916.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 10 2016, 17:15:14 UTC

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• Residence: Census - 1850
• Residence: District 21, Pottawattamie, Iowa, United States - 1850
• Residence: Iowa State Census - 1851
• Residence: Pottawattamie, Iowa, United States - 1851
  • Reference: MyHeritage Family Trees - SmartCopy: May 11 2018, 21:43:51 UTC

Catherine Eller Stoker is the ealiest ancestor of the Stokers and Graybills buried in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery as well as in cemeteries elsewhere in Pottawattamie County and surrounding counties. Her tombstone no longer is to be found in the cemetery. She was born on March 6, 1773 in what is today's Ashe County in the mountains of western North Carolina. Her parents were Peter Eller and Elizabeth Dick (see "The Ellers in America", by J. W. Hook) of German descent. Catherine married Michael Stoker, Sr. in about 1791 and they had eight children born to them in North Carolina. The Stokers and Graybills moved to Jackson County, Ohio together in 1814 where Michael and Catherine Stoker's ninth child, Eller Stoker was born. Five of the nine children are buried in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery.

On January 19, 1833 Mormon missionary Luke S. Johnson baptized several members of the Stoker family into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). By the end of 1833 other Stoker and Graybill family members also were baptized through the missionary efforts of Seymour Brunson and John Fisher. Several years later the Stokers and Graybills heeded the call by Joseph Smith to settle in Missouri. During the next several years the family, along with the rest of the Mormons, was subjected to persecutions in Missouri and the expulsion of the Mormons. The family relocated with the other Latter-day Saints to the state of Illinois. Michael Stoker, Sr. did not make the move from Missouri and it is assumed that he died in Missouri.

Joseph Smith selected an area of Hancock County in Illinois along the Mississippi River for the Latter-day Saints to settle and named the city Nauvoo. Catherine Stoker and most of her progeny lived in the environs of Nauvoo until February, 1846 when the Latter-day Saints were again forced to flee. The Mormon Trail was established through southern Iowa and terminated in Council Bluffs which served as a staging area for the migration on to Utah. It is estimated that Catherine Stoker died in 1850 and was one of the earliest burials in the Stoker - Graybill Cemetery.

There are LDS records that show that Catherine Stoker was baptized for a number of relatives in the Mississippi River prior to the completion of the Nauvoo Temple. After the temple was completed, Catherine Stoker is shown to have received her endowments on Wednesday, January 21, 1846 as recorded on page 163 of the Nauvoo Temple Endowment Register.

On July 30, 1843, in Nauvoo, Illinois, Catherine Stoker received the following Patriarchal Blessing from Hyrum Smith: Sister Catherine, I lay my hands upon your head in the name of Jesus of Nazareth and seal you up unto Eternal Life from this very hour for this is thy Blessing for thy days and years are on the decline. Nevertheless there are some more to be multiplied upon thy head and a consolation to inspire your heart yet in the days of your Pilgrimage and you have a crown laid up for you in the Mansion of your Father and ye shall stand in your place and in your station as a Mother in Israel as one that hath kept the commandments and that hath been faithful. Since you believed, therefore you are blessed in time and your blessing shall be continued in eternity, for you are sealed here on earth and sealed in heaven that you may live and be comforted with this comforter that your name is written as is made known by the Spirit in the Lamb's Book of Life and shall not be blotted out, but shall be continued henceforth and forever and there is a blessing on your house, even your children from generation to generation and the priesthood is theirs according to the rights of lineage and the covenants and promises made to their Father Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Therefore, let your heart be comforted henceforth and forever for the promise is sure and your days shall yet continue for a season and your name shall be perpetuated from generation to generation and handed down in honor by your children until the latest generation. These blessings I seal upon your head in the name of Jesus. Amen Copied from the original by Emily Jane Graybill; Council Bluffs, Iowa; March 20, 1916.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 9 2020, 1:51:45 UTC