Deaths Recorded by Rev George Bell - Bell Hill Church - Wayne Co, KY
Deaths Recorded in
Wayne County, Kentucky
By Rev. George E. Bell of
Bell Hill Church
Beginning in 1905

Rev. George Bell and wife Erna Bertram Bell
Photo contributed by Eileen Mullins.
NEW! BELL family history as written by Rev. George E. Bell. Contributed by Eileen Mullins.
The Reverend George E. Bell was born in Wayne County, KY on April 11, 1885. His parents Silas Bell and Mary Ellen Caylor had lived in the Bell Hill community of eastern Wayne County all of their lives
and their Kentucky roots dated back to the county's formation in 1800.
In 1922 George married Erna "Ernie" Bertram, the daughter of William and Thursa Bertram
from Sunnybook, KY.
In January of 1913 George Bell was ordained a minister of the Baptist faith.
Affectionately called "Preacher George" he ministered to members of the Bell
Hill Baptist Church for several decades. During these years at Bell Hill
Church, Rev. Bell
kept personal diaries of happenings within the county. In his ledger books
he began recording the deaths of church members, neighbors, friends, and family
beginning in 1905, several years before the State of Kentucky required death certificates to be issued.
Rev. Bell continued to record deaths in the county until his own death in 1962
when his sister, Liza Bell Bennett took over the practice. Rev. Bell and
his wife Ernie are buried in
Pleasant Hill Cemetery near Sunnybrook.
These records kept by Rev. Bell are priceless and we are so fortunate that they
survive today. Together with Eileen Mullins (a Bell descendant) we have
transcribed two of the books kept by Rev. Bell. We have sorted these
records in alphabetical order rather than by date for easy searching. Some
of the entries include the person's age at his or her death, maiden names are
sometimes included for married women, and occasionally the cause of death is
listed. There may be some date discrepancies, but usually within one day. Please note that if a person was accidentally killed or murdered by
someone, that person's name was also written down. We feel that this
information is important and because these deaths happened over 40 years
ago we have chosen to include those names as well.
To protect the privacy of the individuals who now own the books, we will not
give out their names or forward inquiries.
We have no further information than what is already listed here. -
Marilyn Gregory Fisher
Deaths Recorded 1905 thru 1943
Deaths Recorded 1943 thru 1962
Wayne Co KYGenWeb
Copyright 2004-2006 - No part may be copied without the authors permission.
Marilyn Fisher & Eileen Mullins