James Chambers & Prudence More / Moore
James and Prudence are no longer linked to Silas by an online-tree hint alone. Sandy reviewed an 1840 Indiana marriage index, their 1860 Daviess County household, and Cynthia Ann’s later death certificate. The records work together to support the parent connection, while the 1850 household remains missing.
The Indiana State Library marriage index lists James Chambers and Prudence More with the date February 8, 1840, in Martin County, Indiana. Sandy has reviewed the index; the original register image is not yet on this site.
DocumentedIn Daviess County, Indiana: James Chambers, Prudence, Mary Jane, Silas L., Cynthia Ann (Sinthaan), Charles R., Mana C., and Daniel M. The enumerator reported James born in Tennessee, Prudence born in Indiana, and Mary Jane, Silas L., and Cynthia Ann born in Indiana.
DocumentedCynthia Ann’s death certificate names James Chambers and Prudence Moore as her parents. Moore is a documented variant of More. Together with the 1860 household and 1840 marriage index, this strongly supports James and Prudence as Silas’s parents.
Strongly supportedCynthia’s death certificate reports Tennessee for both Cynthia and Prudence; the 1860 census reports Indiana for both. Keep each report attributed to its record while the conflict is investigated.
Conflicting evidenceSandy manually searched Baker and Brown townships in Martin County without finding the family. A possible household would include James (about 32–33), Prudence (about 26–28), Mary Jane (about 8), Silas L. (about 5–6), and Cynthia Ann (about 1–2). These are search estimates, not a located census entry or proof they were elsewhere.
Still researchingNot established. A suggested William Thomas Chambers connection remains only an unverified online-tree lead.
Still researchingJames and Prudence: two dates, one original register to find
The Indiana State Library index lists James Chambers and Prudence More, February 8, 1840, Martin County, Indiana. A separate compiled index, Martin County Indiana Marriage Records, 1820–1925, Book 1, lists James Chambers and Prudence Moor, January 18, 1840, with a return dated February 8, 1840 (FamilySearch image 84 of 205).
The ceremony date is unresolved. Neither indexed date is being selected as the ceremony date before the original register is examined. More, Moor, and Moore remain source-specific surname spellings.
Compiled/indexed evidence · original register neededDavid Mack’s application adds a name
David Mack Chambers’s January 24, 1908 marriage application names his parents James Chambers and Prudence Spietta Moore. “Spietta” is preserved as the current reading of that record, pending confirmation; it is not silently adopted as Prudence’s established middle name. The application also reports Tennessee for both parents’ birthplaces, conflicting with the 1860 census report of Indiana for Prudence.
Original application · name reading pending confirmationStill in Daviess County
Sandy has located James and Prudence in the 1860 and 1870 Daviess County, Indiana censuses. The 1870 location is Bogard Township. James’s parents remain unknown; no speculative Tennessee ancestry has been attached.