Johann Christoph "Christopher" Kress^[1]

1824 - 1908  (83 years)

• Name	Johann Christoph "Christopher" Kress
  Residence	1824	Epfenbach, Epfenbach, , Baden-Württemberg, Germany   [2]
  Born	5 Dec 1824	Epfenbach, Epfenbach, , Baden-Württemberg, Germany   [2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]
  Gender	Male
  Business	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  	Kress House
  		Preston-KressHotel-001-illustration.jpg
  Business	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  	North American Hotel
  		Preston-NorthAmericanHotel-0002-1887-Sketch.JPG North American Hotel - Industries of Canada Historical and Commercial Sketches, London, Woodstock, Ingersoll, Guelph, Berlin, Waterloo, St. Thomas, Windsor and Environs, Toronto, M. G. Bixby & Co., Publishers 1887
  Immigration	1850	, Canada   [3]
  Occupation	1852	Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [13]
  	teamster
  Residence	1852	Wilmot Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [9]
  	Lutheran
  Occupation	1861	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [10]
  	Inn Keeper
  Residence	1861	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [10]
  	Lutheran
  Business	1864	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  	Black Bear Hotel
  Interesting	hotel, story, business
  Name	Chistopher Kress
  Name	Christopher Cress
  Name	Christopher Kress
  Residence	1864	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [8, 14]
  Occupation	1871	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [4]
  	Hotelkeeper
  Occupation	1881	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [6]
  	Hotel Keeper
  Occupation	1891	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [11]
  	Hotel Keeper
  Occupation	1901	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [3]
  	Hotel Keeper
  		Hotel Kress about 1910
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-350817
  Died	6 Apr 1908	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [7, 15]
  	Cause: Malignant disease of the stomach & heart failure (3 months)
  Buried	Preston Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [12]
  Person ID	I350817	Generations
  Last Modified	3 Mar 2025

  
  

  Father	George Michael "Michael" Kress,   b. CALC 8 Sep 1790, , Baden, Germany ,   d. 28 Jul 1870, Wilmot Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age ~ 79 years)
  Mother	Katharina Dengel,   b. Between 1793 and 1794, , Baden, Germany ,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Family ID	F24827	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	Margaretha "Margaret" Lang,   b. CALC 23 Oct 1829, of, Waterloo Twp., Region of Waterloo, Ontario ,   d. 2 Aug 1864, Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age ~ 34 years)
  Married	9 Sep 1852	Greenbush (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [13, 16]
  Children	1. Mina Niagerth Kress,   b. 1849, , Germany ,   d. Yes, date unknown   2. Fredrick Marks Kress,   b. 1855, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Last Modified	4 Mar 2025
  Family ID	F36028	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 2	Maria Sophia Barbara "Barbara" Reichert,   b. 6 Apr 1831, Eschelbronn, , Baden-Württemberg, Germany ,   d. 1 Nov 1914, Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 83 years)
  Married	25 Dec 1864	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [8, 14]
  Children	1. Emma Kress,   b. 7 May 1867, Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 1948  (Age 80 years)   2. John Christopher Kress,   b. 1869, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Yes, date unknown   3. William Frederick Kress,   b. 14 Apr 1871, Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 26 Jan 1958, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 86 years)   4. Wilhelmina Sophia "Minnie" "Sophia" Kress,   b. 3 Apr 1876, Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 4 Apr 1930, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 54 years)
  Last Modified	4 Mar 2025
  Family ID	F251501	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Photos		Christopher Kress From the KPL Digital Photograph Collection
  		Christopher Kress From the KPL Digital Photograph Collection

  
  

• Notes

  Born in 1824 in Baden, Germany, Christopher Kress came to Canada with his parents in 1837, where they settled in Wilmot Township. There, he worked on a farm for Noah Shantz and Joel Good and later went to work for Clare and Beck in Preston. In 1857, he purchased and operated the Black Bear Hotel. By 1871, he purchased the North American Hotel from the Cornell estate and operated the establishment until 1900 when the hotel was demolished due to its' limited capacity. A larger, 4-storey, red brick hotel, named the Kress House, was erected as a replacement. On 7 April 1908 Kress died, leaving his wife and four children. He was buried at the Preston cemetery. Kress was also one of the founders of the Speed Park Race Track in Preston. Kitchener Public Library Digital Photograph Collection ___________________ Christopher Kress was born in Baden, Germany in 1824 and came to Canada with his parents in 1837. The family first settled on a farm in the north part of Wilmot township. Mr. Kress came to Preston in 1845 when he took a job as a teamster with the Clare & Beck foundry. He remained with that company for a number of years before leaving to operate a stage coach line carrying the mail between Preston and Waterloo. In 1857 he purchased the Black Bear Hotel which he managed for a number of years. In 1871 he purchased the North American Hotel from the estate of Samuel Cornell. This hotel was located directly across King street from the Black Bear Hotel and had the advantage of having one of the town's mineral springs located on the property. Exploiting the supposed curative powers of the mineral springs. Mr. Kress built the North American Hotel into a major health spa attracting clientele from across Canada and the United States. To accommodate his ever growing business, Mr. Kress enlarged his hotel in 1900 so that it became one of the finest hotels in the country. At the same time he renamed it the Kress Hotel. Mr. Kress died on April 6, 1908 and is buried in Preston Cemetery. Cambridge Mosaic, Jim Quantrell, 1998, City of Cambridge ______________________________________ One who will soon be classed among the old settlers of Preston is Christopher Kress, who by his energy and pluck has accumulated considerable property and who has greatly aided in giving Preston a good name as a desirable place of resort for the cure of rheumatism and kindred diseases, through its mineral baths. The mineral springs were struck by one Peter Erb while boring for salt in 1838, which he never obtained. He placed no value in the sulphur water he had so struck. After abandoning boring, the water of the spring was employed for driving an overshot wheel of a wagon making shop, occupied by one Daniel Hagey, until Mr. Samuel Cornell obtained from Mr. Joseph Erb sufficient land near the spring to erect an hotel. Mr. Cornell with great energy built suitable premises and a bath house with boiler to enable him to furnish hot and cold baths.. His undertaking proved successful but death terminated his career. The property was sold and Christopher Kress became its owner. He greatly enlarged, improved and ornamented it and the invalids who have sought and obtained relief at the Preston mineral baths count by the hundreds. Fifth Annual Report Of The Waterloo Historical Society, 1917 pg 32 __________________ North American Hotel, the Preston Summer Resort, C. Kress, Proprietor, Main Street. There is nothing which can contribute more to the social if not to the intrinsic importance of a place, than an excellently equipped hotel and summer resort. It lends to the locality a social prestige which could not otherwise be obtained. The village of Preston boasts such a resort, namely, the now popular and widely known North American Hotel, whose mineral baths have afforded relief to so many who had been suffering from gout, nervous debility, disease of the stomach, etc. This hotel or summer resort is splendidly situated on rising ground at the head of the village, and commands a magnificent view of the surrounding country. The hotel contains fifty bed rooms, four parlors, and a smoking and sitting room. In the house are all modern conveniences, and there is everything to be found in a first-class hotel. Mr. Kress, the proprietor, also owns a few neat collages in the vicinity, which he lets to private parties during the summer months . They are pleasantly situated, affording all the charms of rustic retreats. Behind the hotel is the mineral fountain, while there are also shady walks and a skating rink. In the front, on a square, a band stand is erected, where during the summer evenings a band discourses sweet and appropriate airs. In connection with the hotel is a large livery and boarding stable, and Mr. Kress is the owner of the stage which run s daily from the house to Berlin, in connection with lines to St. Jacobs, Elmira, Hawkesville, etc. M r. Kress is eminently qualified for the position as proprietor of a summer resort, and is deservedly popular with all. Industries of Canada Historical and Commercial Sketches, London, Woodstock, Ingersoll, Guelph, Berlin, Waterloo, St. Thomas, Windsor and Environs, Toronto, M. G. Bixby & Co., Publishers 1887

  
  

• Sources

  [S10] Book - Vol II A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 493. [S3042] Baden and Hesse Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1502-1985. Name:Johann Christoph Gress Gender:Male Baptism Age:0 Birth Date:5. Dez 1824 (5 Dec 1824) Birth Place:Epfenbach, Baden, Germany Baptism Date:8. Dez 1824 (8 Dec 1824) Residence Place:Epfenbach, Baden, Germany Father: Georg Michael Gress Mother: Katharina Dengel FHL Film Number:1189285 [S204] Census - ON, Waterloo, Preston - 1901, Preston (Village) F-2 Page 4. [S105] Census - ON, Waterloo, Preston - 1871, Pg 6. [S134] Census - ON, Waterloo, Wilmot - 1851, Div 4 Pg 3. [S297] Census - ON, Waterloo, Preston - 1881, Page 40. [S713] Vit - ON - Death Registration, death certificate 29610 (1908), Christopher Kress. Christopher Kress, d. 6 Apr 1908 Preston, aged 83y, b. Germany, occupation Hotel Keeper, cause: Malignant disease of the stomach & heart failure (3 months) [S5] Vit - - ON, Waterloo - 1858-1869 Marriage Register. Kress Christoph, widower, 40, Preston, Baden, s/o G Michael & Catherine ( Dougal? ), married 25 Dec 1864 Barbara Sauter, widow; 33, Preston, Baden, d/o Michael & Sophia (Dall) [S134] Census - ON, Waterloo, Wilmot - 1851, Div. 4 Page 4. [S1473] Census - ON, Waterloo, Preston - 1861, Div. 3 Page 30. [S2441] Census - ON, Waterloo, Preston - 1891, Section 1 Page 4. [S239] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Cambridge - Preston CC#6335 Cemetery Internet Link . [Front] Father/ Christopher/ Kress/ 1824 - 1908./ [Back] Wilbur C. Kress/ 1901 - 1963. [S6] Church Records - ON, Waterloo - Bindeman, F. W. - Card Index Kitchener Public Library. Christoph Kress, teamster of Waterloo married 9 Sep 1852 in Greenbush by banns to Margareth Lang of Waterloo, wit: Adam Kress of Wilmot & Peter Offelmann, of Preston [S7] News - ON, Waterloo, Kitchener - Berliner Journal (1859-1917), 12 Jan 1865. Dec. 25, 1864 Barbara Sauter and Christoph Kress, both of Preston, by Rev. Wurster [S116] Vit - ON - Death Registration. Name:Christopher Kress Gender:Male Birth Year:abt 1825 Birth Place:Germany Age at Death:83 Death Date:6 Apr 1908 Death Place:Waterloo, Ontario, Canada [S13] Vit - - ON, Waterloo - Wellington District Marriage Register Part 1 1840-1852, Rev'd Frederick W. Bindemann, Minister of The United Lutheran and German Reformed Protestant Church, Greenbush, Waterloo Twp., 1 Jan. 1852 - 1 Jan. 1853 #226.

  
  

• Event Map

  Residence - 1824 - Epfenbach, Epfenbach, , Baden-Württemberg, Germany Born - 5 Dec 1824 - Epfenbach, Epfenbach, , Baden-Württemberg, Germany Business - Kress House - - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Business - North American Hotel - - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Immigration - 1850 - , Canada Occupation - teamster - 1852 - Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - Lutheran - 1852 - Wilmot Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Married - 9 Sep 1852 - Greenbush (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - Inn Keeper - 1861 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - Lutheran - 1861 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Business - Black Bear Hotel - 1864 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - 1864 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Married - 25 Dec 1864 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - Hotelkeeper - 1871 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - Hotel Keeper - 1881 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - Hotel Keeper - 1891 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - Hotel Keeper - 1901 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - Cause: Malignant disease of the stomach & heart failure (3 months) - 6 Apr 1908 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - - Preston Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth