Gerburts und Taufschein (Birth and Baptismal Certificate)

Translation:
Anna Maria Susserin was born the 1st of February 1804 in Longswamp Township, Berks County in the State of Pennsylvania.  The parents are Tobias Susser and his spouse Elisabetha.  Soon after she was baptized by the venerable Mr. Obenhaussen, Lutheran minister. The sponsor was the widow Barbara Meinder.  In the year 1817 she was instructed by the Reverend F. Heissom in the evangelical, Lutheran religion and prepared for Holy Communion and confirmed.

To think about Jesus often and many times will give you joy and delight beyond all measure, like honey’s sweet kind is the presence of His Grace.  Nothing dearer does my voice sing, nothing sounds purer to my ears, and nothing is sweeter to my heart than my most beloved Jesus.  Oh, Jesus bosom friend and delight, Oh, love of life, Oh, true son, without you all joy and all that one yearns for on Earth is gone.
Oh, Jesus your love is sweet and since I keep it in my heart it nourishes me many thousand, thousand, thousand times.
My little Jesus is in my thoughts wherever I go, and I sing wherever I am.  How glad and overjoyed I’ll be when He’ll be and stay mine.

One of the most unusual and distinctive fraktur styles is that of the “Wetzel-Geometric Artist.”  His standard format had a central rectangular text panel enclosed in a straight-line border with a kaleidoscopic range of squared compass-made geometric designs across the top flanked by intricately patterned columns, often displaying interlaced and diamond shaped motifs, in a manner suggestive of inlay on furniture.  Other compass flowers or stars decorate the corners.  The composition is ordered, balanced, and extremely detailed, attesting to the skill of the artist.  He employed templates for his designs and it is likely that his customers could select the combination of patterns they wanted for each certificate.  This artist usually included a great deal of genealogical information as well as religious affiliation.  This certificate not only records the birth and baptism of the child, but also her confirmation.