This post was contributed to the Crawford County Chapter of OGS by Kristina Stearley as part of the Florence Siefert Scrapbook in 2010.
The scrapbook is compiled from undated, unidentified newspaper clippings involving events in the lives of Crawford County citizens living in or having connections to New Washington, Tiro, Shelby, Sulphur Springs, Chatfield, Bucyrus, Ashland, Mansfield, and other areas. Only minimal spelling or punctuation corrections were made. Unreadable areas are shown by underlines, dots &/or question marks. This collection has been scanned, “optical character recognized” (OCR’d), proofed, then coded for HTML by volunteers of the Crawford County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society. Since the copies are not of the best quality errors may have been made. Please contact us if you find corrections needing to be made or can verify any missing dates which could be added.
The funeral bell has again tolled the knell of a departed soul. Again the sad procession has slowly wended its way to the open grave that marks the bourne from whence there is no returning. Susanna Guiss, in the full measure of her years, has fallen asleep. Like a ripe sheaf she has been gathered. into the garner, and now sleeps “The sleep that knows no waking” in the windowless palace of rest. The subject of this sketch was born June 22,1820, in Westmoreland county, Pa., removed to Columbiana county, Ohio, when five years old. Some years later she came to Crawford county, where she has since resided. She was the daughter of Jacob and Eva Spaythe Guiss, and one of ten children – six sons and four daughters – of which number, there remains only one, Christian Guiss, of New Washington. She was married to Gotlieb Rapp and was the mother of ten children, of which number six remain to mourn her departure together with twenty-seven grand children and 7 great grand children. She was a good wife and mother, and the life of this christian woman was pure, simple and consistent, and the world is better for her having lived in it. Her husband died Jan. 1, 1874, leaving her to tread life’s solitary pathway alone for 22 years. She died at the residence of her son, Henry Rapp, January 1, 1896, aged 75 yrs. 6 mo. and 25 days, and was buried in the New Washington cemetery. The funeral services were held at the church of God Chapel, Rev. S. Kline officiating, Text, Rev. 14th chapter and 13th verse, – Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.” The services were impressive and suggestive of the fact that this world is not our abiding place. “Time, the tomb builder” has placed another land mark on the journey to the great hereafter. Let us all live so that we may take up the refrain, “Let me die the death of the righteous and my last end be liken unto His.
–G.L.P.
