Pressey Genealogy of Indiana

This Pressey genealogy is mostly in the state of Indiana beginning with Charles Pressey. The name is occasionally spelled incorrectly as Pressy, Presse and Pressie. Census takers have even spelled it as Presley.


Charles Pressey b. about 1796 in New Hampshire

married a Katherine/Catherine/or Caroline Stork/Stark/ or Sturk in Indiana b. about 1804 Netherlands?

Indiana State Library lists Charles Pressey and Catherine Stork m. April 31, 1825 in Knox County, Indiana - at that time the entire state of Indiana was Knox County

There is a possibility of another marriage to a Sarah Drain on January 31, 1844 - this one is not proven however.

Another definite marriage of Charle Pressey is to Delilah Cummings on July 29, 1847. Delilah was a widow of a man named Cumming or Cummins because on the 1850 census several children are listed. There are rumors she might have been marrried to someone before that with the last name of Moore. Delilah's maiden name was Rhoades (with various spellings). Her middle name is likely Rachel. She was born in 1817 and I believe she is buried in Pike County, Indiana.

Children listed on the Census are

Jane Cummins age 12
William R. Cummins age 10
Amanda Cummins Age 4

Children:

1. Elizabeth Pressey b. 1825/26  m. Hiram Parris b. 1830/31 (father Ezekiel mother Elizabeth)
Elizabeth may have had a previous marriage to Henry Wolf on Feb. 8, 1845
     Children: Lavinia A. b. 1851
                    Mary J. b. 1853
                    Abraham b April 1856  m. Sereda J.  (Jesse E., Dora J., William R., Lillie M.)
                    Elizabeth C. b. 1858
                    William b. 1860
                    George M. b. 1862
                    John T. b. May 7 1867 m. Mary Ann (Mollie) Tolson Wratten (widow)
                    James C. b. 1870

2. John Pressey b. about 1827 m. December 31, 1849 Elizabeth Parris b. about 1833
     
Children:
1. Albion Pressey b. 1851 m . Lousia F. Pry
                         Children: William/Willard Pressey b. 1870
                                        Lousia A. b. 1873
                                        Samuel/Lemuel b. 1876
                                        Stella b. 1879
                                     
2. John S. or L. Pressey b. 1857
3. Lucretia F. Pressey b. about 1867 m. John Huffman Evans
               Children: William
                              Stella m. Harry Huffman
                                            Children: Paul E.
                                                           George Martin
                                                           Helen A. m. Delmar Hert
                                                           Dorothy m. ? Fletcher
                              James
                              Leona m. Claude Taylor
                              Eulah m. Hobart Hedges?
                              Ray m. Opal?
                              Luther (died as a child) age 13
                              Jennette Elnora m


3. Peter Pressey m. India E. Chambers
1. Children: William Hamilton Pressey b. 1858 m. Elisabeth Brock
                Children: Clarence
                               Lula m. Jasper Lee Woodall
                                       Children: Clarence Roscoe
2. Sarah Ann Pressey b. 1861 d. 1951  m. 1878 Knox County, IN William H. Lamb b. 1855/6 d. 1946
Children:
1.William Walter "Mood" Lamb b. 1879
2. Rosa Lamb b. Dec. 1881          m. Cockerham (Child: William August Cockerham)
3. George W. Lamb b. March 1884 d. 1943                               m. Ada Ellen (Ella) Parker d. 1939
4. Edward Lamb b. Nov. 1887 d. 1971                                   m. Bernice  Children: Chester, Russel R.
5. Nellie b. Nov. 1889  d. 1977   m. James Lewis Ray b. 1886 d. 1918  (Children: Chrystal Irene m. ? Wise, Ryburne) m. Joe Daniels m. Roy F. Kortge
6. Nettie/Netta Irene  b. Aug. 1892    m. George R. Hicks
7. Edna Carrie b. April 1896 d. 1977              m. Ory Isaac Kortge b. 1889 d. 1923 (mining accident) (Children, Onal W., Monoka S., Marcelina H.)  m. Vernon Myers
8. Ercil Carmen  b. Jan. 1900       m. Harry J. Lemon (Children: William Arnum m. Joan Jones, Harry, Lloyd)
9. Blanche Sarah b. Aug. 15 1903 d. Dec. 1, 1973 m. ? Parker (Children: Don, Gaylord, Gwinda Lee m. Charles Robert Dukate)
                     
Peter also married  Elisabeth (Loveless/Willis) Mitchell (widow of Thomas Mitchell)

4. Jacob Pressey m. Julia Ann Reel
Children: John C b. 1854
               Catherine b. 1856
               Emmanuel Gibb b. 1863
             

Zimri A. Lamb, Alemena, Norton County, Kansas

Zimri A. Lamb b. Sept 6, 1854 Illinois d. 1929 Kansas  m. Julia A."Jenny" Hawk b. 1855 d. 1929 Kansas

Married by 1880 Federal Census

Share a tombstone at Fairview Cemetery in Norton County, Kansas

Julia A. "Jenny" Hawk was the widow of Tinon Lamb b. Unknown d. before 1880

Tinon Lamb was the brother of Zimri A. Lamb

Tinon Lamb's birth and death date are unknown.

Children of Tinon Lamb and Julia Hawk

Jasper R. Lamb. b. Jan. 1877

Children of Zimri Lamb and Julia Hawk

Cora Mae. b. Nov  7 1880 Neb. d. Aug. 1, 1912 Kansas  Fairview Cemetery Kansas
Frank A, b. Jan  51882 Neb. d. Aug 31, 1958 Kansas Mt. Hope Cemetery Kansas m. Salina M.
Johnie A.  b. Nov 1883 Kansas d. May 5 1909  Kansas Mt. Hope Cemetery Kansas m. Mary R.
Riley b. Aug 1890 Kansas
Troy b. Nov 1894 Kansas

Cynthia Ann Davis

Cynthia Ann Davis were married in 1846 in Wayne County, Indiana. By 1850 they are listed on a census record in Parke County, Indiana. Three children from an unknown woman are living in the household as stepchildren. Zemeriah Lamb and Cynthia are the parents of several children listed on census records.

1. Annis Lamb m. Wesley Kent in Parke County, Indiana
2. Rosa Ann Lamb m. Israel Moland Kent (brother of Wesley Kent) in Parke County, Indiana
3. Ada Ruth Lamb m. George Addison Trusler m. Lewis Havens (both marriages in Parke County, Indiana)
4. Zimri Rufus Lamb m. Ruth Montgomery (widow of Mason Wolfe) in Parke County, Indiana
5. Andrew Jeremiah Lamb m. Alice Byerly in Parke County, Indiana
6. Joseph Lamb m. Florence V. Anthony m. Elizabeth Barnaby (both marriages in Parke County, Indiana)

Several additional children are listed on other records as being offspring of Zemeriah Lamb. According to these children's birth years, Cynthia Ann Davis should be their mother.

7. William H. Lamb b.1855/6 d. 1946 m. Sarah Ann Pressey in Knox County, Indiana in 1878
8. Jane Lamb b. 1851 d. Unknown (only found on one record with this family)
9. Asenith M. Lamb (also known as Senith and Sena) b. 1860 d. 1948 m. Amon Perry, Knox County, IN
10. Elizabeth Lamb (Lizzie) b. 1862 d  m. Mason Perry Stafford
11. Sarah Lamb b. 1863 d  m. George Cummins
12. Mahala Lamb b. 1865 d.  m. Andrew Jackson Perry (brother of Amon Perry)

Cynthia Ann Davis and Zemeriah Lamb probably were divorced by 1867 because Zemeriah remarried that year. On the 1870 census record in Parke County, Indiana Cynthia is listed as divorced.

Children of Unknown Wife

Zemeriah Lamb arrived in Parke County, Indiana by 1850 with three children from an unknown wife.

1. Edmund/Edmond Lamb b. approximately 1828 d. Unknown m. Lydia Cheezum  in Parke County, Indiana

This family moved to Cumberland County, Illinois where they had several children. They eventually moved to Kansas.

2. Ellen/Ellenor Lamb b. approximately 1834 d. Unknown m. Christopher Bryant in Parke County, Indiana

Christopher Bryant and Ellen were last seen on the 1860 census in Rosedale, Illinois with several children. Christopher Bryant's middle name may be Myer. He was probably married at least once previously to Martha Beard. He may also have been married before Martha. There are no details on what happened to this family. However, Christopher was much older than Ellen. There is speculation that he died in the Civil War.


3. Mary Lamb b. approximately 1841 d. Missouri about age 57 m. James Madison Puett in Parke County, Indiana, her death certificate lists Zemeriah Lamb as her father her Mother is listed as Unknown

James Madison Puett and Mary has several children including Zimri Puett. They lived in Indiana, Kansas and Missouri.

Zemeriah Lamb

Zemeriah Lamb b. 1811 approximate in North Carolina d. before 1880 Indiana

Parents:  Unknown

m. Unknown
Children:
Edmund/Edmond m. Lydia Ann Cheezum, Parke County, Indiana
Ellen Lamb m. Christoper Bryant, Parke County, Indiana
Mary Lamb m. James Madison Puett, Parke County, Indiana

m. Cynthia Ann Davis: married 1846 Wayne County Indiana divorced before 1867

     mother: Mary Davies

m. Susan Ann Nance: married 1867 in Pike County, Indiana  

     (Father: Thomas Nance/Nanse Mother: Elizabeth Willis)

Parke County, Indiana

Beginnings of Parke County, Indiana

Parke County, Indiana was established in 1821 with the county seat currently located in the city of Rockville. Pioneers were already living in this area due to its proximity to the Wabash River. Today, this area is extremely popular because of the numerous covered bridges and an annual festival each October.

Early Settlement

The first residents of the area were Native Americans followed by French-Canadian colonists in the early 1700s. Parke County was originally part of Vigo County and named in honor of Captain Benjamin Parke. Parke continued a life in public service as a delegate of Indiana Territory to the U. S. Congress while eventually becoming a U. S. District Judge for the state.

Important Sites

The area soon increased in population due to the development of the Wabash and Erie Canal. Today, much of the land in this geographic location is either farmed or used for other agricultural purposes. Two important state parks are located in this area including Turkey Run and Shades. Parke County, Indiana has several small cities including Rosedale, Montezuma, Mecca, Marshall, Bloomingdale and Rockville.   

What is a Family Bible?

If you are lucky there is a family Bible in your family. Family Bibles provided paper where families wrote records of births, marriages, deaths and other important events. Often they are the only record of important events that occurred within the family. For instance, an infant might have been born stillborn, or only lived a short time. This typically means the birth and death was never recorded anywhere except for the family Bible. There will likely be no census or baptismal record of this child. Small children often did not have a tombstone placed on their grave. In addition, marriage records may only be located in a family Bible. In the past many marriages were common law or church marriages with no written record. In addition, many official marriage records have been lost due to fires and floods. Great care must be taken when reading the information in a family Bible because the pages may be fragile while sunlight, skin oils and other contaminants can harm the delicate pages. Use special gloves that are acid free and created for old document research. Keep the book away from dampness, mold and bright light. Do not write on the pages or try to copy the pages with a machine because it will cause serious damage to the Bible. You can transcribe information from the family Bible pages into a newer book or online. Make sure to store the Bible properly in an archival acid free box or container.

The Gathering

Gather documents for further genealogy research. Find birth certificates, marriage certificates and licenses, death records, school records, military records and any other documents that contain names and dates of relatives or friends you are researching. Ask relatives if they have any documents for ancestors, just make a copy of those for your file. Old letters often have information that can be helpful and they definitely add dimension to your research. Find yearbooks and photos for extra documentation for your ancestry search. If you are very fortunate someone may have an old family bible with notes about your ancestors. Gathering documents is a process that will continue throughout genealogy research.

How to Begin - Remembering

To begin your family tree or research write down what you already know.  Write what you remember first.  Later you are going to determine if this information is accurate. Begin by writing your own name, birth date and place of birth.  Next add spouses and children to your list.  Now write your parents names and their information. List your siblings under your parent’s names.  You can also add stepparents or stepsiblings and half siblings.    Next add grandparent’s names and information.  Add your aunts and uncles and your cousins’ names and information.  Perhaps you also remember great aunts or great uncles names and some information concerning them. Anything you can remember – write it down!  The more you think about this the more you will remember.   This process may be quick for you or it may take time.  The more you work on this the more you will remember from family reunions and information you have heard from family members.

What got me started on my obsession - the story behind it all.

When the last census was beginning in 2010 I heard about how people could actually look at census records on the computer - I began the search for a few family names I knew - and I was hooked.  First of all I love research so spending hours (as many as possible) alone in front of a computer screen was my cup of tea!  It also involves a mystery - like Sherlock Holmes (or any other detective you enjoy) I have to find a clue here and a clue there to solve the puzzle.  Typically the answers are found a tiny piece at a time.  It requires great patience to search for answers to build a family tree.

Obsessed

Obsessed means the inability to stop think about something.

Genealogy

Genealogy is the study and building of a family tree or timeline of an ancestor or ancestors.