This certainly seems like a long shot. My g-g-grandfather died in the Civil war. His widow's request for a pension for the children has created a rather good sized file in the National Archives. In order to prove their relationship, the family Bible was used instead of vital records which were not recorded at the time. Because a family Bible did exist, there is always the slim chance that it still exists ----somewhere. This is what I am searching for: Family Bible of Henry and Christina Elizabeth PORTER from Marine city or the vicinity in MICHIGAN. Most of the births would be dated about 1860 or so. If anyone has this or has seen reference to it, please e-mail me. THANK YOU. Good luck with your own quest. Sincerely, Maxine Capezza