This marker to commemorate the life of Thomas Lamb, was not placed at Lamb Cemetery where he is actually buried. It was placed at nearby Cade Cemetery, Freestone Co., TX, amid the graves of other Lamb family members. The reason for this decision is because of the inaccessibility and difficulty of placing it in the actual Lamb Cemetery, due to the extremely dense, rough, rugged, and overgrown terrain.

As a boy, Thomas was living in New Madrid, MO, when the big earthquake came after midnight on 16 December 1811. The family fled to the LaMotte Prairie area of Illinois Territory near where the town of Palestine is now located. They lived in old Fort LaMotte 1811-1814. They later settled just south of the Fort where the children grew up and Thomas met and married Elizabeth Brimberry, daughter of Jacob and Jane Cunningham Brimberry on 13 December 1827 in Crawford Co., IL.

In 1836, Thomas and Elizabeth left Illinois for Texas where he claimed his Second Class Headright of 1280 acres in what is now Madison County, south of the present town of Midway. Thomas's Grant was Certificate Number 26, Abstracts 144 and 145. After a short time they left Madison County because of Indian trouble, moving to Robertson County (now Limestone County). It should be noted that Robertson County, formed 14 December 1837, was large and vast. All or parts of 17 present day counties (including Limestone and Freestone Counties) were created from Robertson County. The family stayed here only a few months, again because of Indian trouble, and moved to Walker County where many of Elizabeth's relatives and other friends from Illinois lived. In 1850 they returned to the part of Limestone County which is now Freestone County. Freestone County was created from Limestone County on 6 September 1850.

Thomas operated the "L Six" Ranch, and his cattle brand was registered as Texas Number 63 in Robertson, Limestone, and Freestone Counties. Lambs Creek, which flows from the southwest corner of Freestone County for 7 1/2 miles to its mouth on Lake Limestone, in the southeast corner of Limestone County, is said to have been named for Thomas Lamb, one of the early settlers of Freestone County. Thomas spent much of his first 14 years in Texas in the service of the State, in the Rangers or Texas Army. He is listed in the Index to Military Rolls of the Republic of Texas 1835-1845.

Outside the entrance to nearby Woodland Cemetery, Freestone Co., TX, is a large granite Historical Marker, erected by the State of Texas in 1936, on which Thomas Lamb is named as one of the charter trustees of Woodland College For Boys in 1863.

Thomas and Elizabeth Brimberry Lamb had 12 children, 8 of whom lived to adulthood. After the death of Elizabeth in 1863, Thomas married Mrs. Mary Patten on 22 January 1865 in Freestone Co., TX. They had one child. Thomas Lamb was the son of John and Elizabeth A. Davis Lamb, Sr. Elizabeth Brimberry was the daughter of Jacob and Jane Cunningham Brimberry.
..........

This information was compiled from Family Records of Vena Sloan Blount and Alkmena Blount Barger (including personal letters, and Sloan Family Bible, originally belonging to Robert Douglas and Jane LAMB Sloan, first child of Thomas and Elizabeth Brimberry Lamb); Reprint of Biographies From The Lone Star State, Stephenie H. Tally-Frost, 1966, p. 389-390; History of Freestone County Texas, Freestone County Historical Commission, First Edition 1978, #504 Thomas Lamb, by Marion Earl Brimberry, p. 451; Texas Parks And Wildlife website; Index to Military Rolls of the Republic of Texas 1835-1845 website; Archives and Records, Texas General Land Office website; and The Handbook of Texas Online, joint project of The General Libraries at the University of Texas at Austin, and the Texas State Historical Association website. Written by Alkmena Blount Barger, 2005.

This is the original wrought iron fence surrounding Lamb Cemetery, which is approximately 15' x 40' in size. It has become completely overgrown with trees, brush, weeds, vines, etc., and there are no visible grave markers remaining.