This young lady, Marie Louisa Waters, was born Jan.
12, 1819, in that same community and on March 24, 1839
she married Thomas Slier. They had three children: Mary
Catherine, John William, and Elizabeth Hannah. In later
years Mary Catherine was destined to marry Joseph
Stitzel in Illinois and became a prominent homemaker
there. In 1848 the Slifers and their young family left
Maryland for Iffinois, travelling by wagon to Cincinnati,
Ohio, where they transferred to a boat arid continued on
down the Ohio River to the Mississippi River and then
north on that river to a point close to Polo, Ill, where they
travelled across country to settle there. After a short stay
of a year or so there, they moved northwest to the area
north and east of Mt. Carroll. They farmed a few years.
but soon he set up shop in Mt. Carroll to enter his trade as
a harness and shoemaker. This occupation he continued
the rest of his active life.
In their older and declining years, the Slifers made their
home with their oldest daughter, Mary C. who was now
Mrs. Joseph Stitzel. There in that spacious country home
a couple miles west of Lanark they spent their remaining
years.
The Slifers were a devout Christian couple, who were
faithful to each other, their God, their Church and their
friends. They were members of the Church of the
Brethren, then known as Dunkards. It was their daily
custom through all their lives to have Devotions. Father
Slifer would read several chapters from the Bible, the rest
listening, and then followed by prayer. Folks who were
acquainted with them throughout their lives were
impressed with their affection and devotion to each other.
Their kind words and acts showed much respect for each
other.
In March, 1914, they celebrated their Diamond
Wedding Anniversary of 75 years together, a privilege few
people ever have. They lived for only about 18 months
after their diamond anniversary and passed away only a
few weeks apart.
Source: A Goodly Heritage Supplement #1 Spring 1975
Thomas Slifer was born Feb. 22, 1818, in Frederick
County, Md., near Burkettsville. He was one of a family of
four boys and two girls. As was the custom so often in
those times, young boys were taught a trade of some kind
through an apprenticeship under a responsible tradesman.
So it was that at an early age this boy was apprenticed to
an older cousin, John Slifer, a harness and shoemaker, in
whose home he lived and worked out his term of
apprenticeship until he reached the age of 21. Thus began
a very unusual story. The wife of this harnessmaker had
some relatives whose father and mother had died recently,
and left a family of five children. This wife, being a very
kind person, decided to take a little girl from that family
and rear her as her own daughter. Marie Louisa Waters
also became a member of this family of Slifers. As the
years rolled on these two young people, not related, but
living in the same house became attached to each other.
Thus began a romance which ended in their marriage after
they became of age. A marriage that continued on for over
76 years, since they lived to be 97 and 96 years of age
respectively. In addition to the 76 years of married life
together could be added the time spent together in their
young lives.
