William Leonard Pressey (1845-1908)
As family history researchers know so well, our ancestors moved around much more than we expected them to. This applies to both the Pressey and Stacy families whose research is presented here. William Pressey’s family lived in Bradford MA, Sutton NH and Amesbury MA. The Stacy family were from the Dover-Farmington area of New Hampshire, and before that the York Co. Maine area. Both families had ties to Salem Massachusetts and the infamous witchcraft trials.
Their faces are distinctive–William Leonard Pressey and Jennie Eliza Stacey each married twice and lived long and productive lives.
This is astonishing, at least for William, because of his past. He was a Civil War veteran, a member of the 22nd Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (also known as Henry Wilson’s Regiment), Company H. The surprise is that William survived the War of the Rebellion at all. During service the regiment lost 9 officers and 207 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded; and 1 officer and 102 enlisted men by disease. (A total of 319 deaths). Of Company H that started with 146 men: 18 were killed in action, 2 died of wounds, 11 died of disease, 1 died in prison, 54 were discharged for disability, 1 was dropped from the roll, 2 drowned, 31 were transferred, 6 deserted and at the end of service, 17 were mustered out. Continue reading
