The Barbary Aplin Cyphering Book contains examples and explanations of arithmetic operations, and genealogical information about the Applin, Sparks, and Coxe families of New Jersey. The first 10 pages of the book are arithmetic rules, proofs, problems and solutions, and tables. Although the manuscript inscription on the cover is "Barbary Aplin's Cyphering Book," Elizabeth Sparks signed her name on page five, suggesting that she may have contributed to the volume.
Eight additional pages contain sparse genealogical notes regarding the Applin, Sparks, and Coxe families of New Jersey, including birth and death dates for several members of the families. Also of interest is a brief note regarding the deaths of Mary and Hanna Sparks in 1824, accompanied by a small swatch of cloth.
The fourth page of the volume includes a young person's drawings of plants, a person, buildings, a fence, and a bird.
Elizabeth Applin, the daughter of Peter and Sarah Holton Applin of New Jersey, was born on September 27, 1796, and married Aaron Sparks (b. 1791). They had six children: Sarah, Abner, Hanna, Mary, Charles, and David. Hannah and Mary both died in the summer of 1824, and Elizabeth died on August 6, 1880. The relationship of Barbary Aplin to this family is currently unknown.
