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     The 3 ½ by 5 3/8 inch pocket bible shown here was printed at the Oxford University press for the British and Foreign Bible Society in the year of our Lord, 1861.  How or when the Bible made it to the Confederate States is unknown, but thousands were brought through the blockade to distribute to the troops.  Most are lost to history and very few can be identified to a particular Confederate soldier.  This is an exception; as it is not only identified but can be documented as having been carried in service and captivity.

     Written on the flyleaf in ink is: T A Robinson.  Comp (g) 3d  NC.C Kinston NC.  Robinson enlisted in his company at New Hanover County, the county seat of which is Wilmington, North Carolina on June 21, 1862.  Robinson was from the adjoining county of Bladen.  By determining when his company was at Kinston, one could date when Robinson received the Bible.

     In pencil and perpendicular to the previous inscription, Robinson wrote Bladen Co NC and on the opposite page he wrote, again in pencil: T.A. Robinson Lauren’s Bladen Co N.C and below that a Masonic symbol.  On the following page written in pencil is: T.A. Robinson Elizabethtown, Bladen Co.  It is clear that Private Robinson intended this book to identify his remains and where his people were, should he fall in battle.  I cannot find the meaning of “Lauren’s” but it was perhaps his family seat or a community that no longer exists.  Written on the inside cover is “Daniel 3d Chapt” which gives the history of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego being delivered from the fiery furnace because of their faith and faithfulness.  He also wrote “Psalms 23d Chapt. 16^th of August 1864” and at differing places are written references to Judges, Proverbs, and Kings, etc.  The Bible has notes throughout, far too many to decipher here, but would be a wonderful research project to get into the mind of the man that wrote them.  There is also an inscription in the back that reads “captured on May 17^th, 1863.  We can be sure he kept the Bible throughout his captivity because he continues to make notations up until 1871.

     The Bible is in relatively good condition; the hinges for the back cover at one point were pulled loose but have been reattached so that it is hardly noticeable.  The binding and all of the pages are secure and can easily be thumbed through.

     There is so much information here that the research possibilities are endless and could one take the time to do it properly, it would make a fascinating article.