Sarah Louisa Scriven

Sarah Louisa Shultz was the fourth child of John D. and Maggie J. (Van Sickle) Shultz. She was two months old in the 1860 Census. However, her PA death certificate placed her birth about 1856.

Sarah Louisa Shultz was born deaf. By 1880, she was placed, by Sullivan County, PA, into the home of an elderly couple in Forks, Sullivan, PA. This couple was Daniel O'Keeffe and his wife Bridget (Leahy) Keeffe. They were in their mid 80's, and Daniel was blind with age.

It was in the Keefe home that Sarah had two known children with a Keefe son. Her son, Joseph W. Keefe, noted on his Social Security application that his father was John Keefe. It is unclear if John Keefe was also the father of Sarah's daughter, Mary Keefe, since she died young, and her husband, the informant on her PA death certificate, listed his own father's name in the section meant for Mary's father's name. It is unclear if John Keefe and Sarah ever married but unlikely that they did.

The next available record has the never married Sarah Shultz of New Albany, PA, marrying a forty-one-year-old, widowed, farmer from Union, Wisconsin. She married Edgar Nichols on June 30, 1886, in New Albany, Bradford, PA. It is unclear if Sarah ever joined her husband in Wisconsin or if they had any children.

Another marriage took place between Sarah Nichols and Benjamin F. Nickerson on January 7, 1888, in Monroeton, Bradford, PA. Both parties listed as residents of Overton, PA. Benjamin listed as having been divorced on January 31, 1887, and Sarah listed as never having been married (which wasn't correct, but remember Sarah was deaf and non-verbal so really couldn't answer any questions). Benjamin F. Nickerson died in August of 1895. Again, it is unknown if this union resulted in any children.

Sarah's final marriage occurred on January 26, 1902, in Albany, Bradford, PA, when she married the widower Rowland Scriven. Roland died in 1914.

It appears that Sarah is in an unmarked grave.

Her life filled with silence, but she is no longer invisible.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 1 2021, 4:31:44 UTC