Many family trees on Ancestry.com attach him as the son of William “Uncle Billie” Adams (1802-1881), son of Stephen Adams and Mollie Webb, and pioneer settler of Magoffin Co. But this seems unlikely, considering that (1) he does not appear on the list of William’s children in the biographical sketch, and (2) judging by the 1880 census, Samuel’s mother outlived both her husbands, since she is recorded with him as a widow Elizabeth Roark, age 75, in the 1880 census.

Her death certificate records Zilphia Adams, age 72, born 1842 in Kentucky, died 28 July 1914 in Magoffin Co., Ky, widowed, father Gilbert Adams, mother’s maiden name Nancy, both born in Virginia, cause of death acute ascending paralysis, informant Sherman Rice, Jayton, burial info blank.

Magoffin Co., Ky marriage records list the marriage on 17 Jan 1883 of S. J. Adams and Zilpha Rice.

1900 census of Morgan Co., Ky, Maytown precinct, enumerated 29 June, lists on p. 24A as family #420/429:
Adams, Samuel J., 76, b. May 1824, Ky NC Tenn, preacher, married 54 years; Zilpha, wife, 57, b. Oct 1842, Ky Ky Ky, married 54 years, mother of 4 children, 2 living.

Samuel apparently interpreted the “number of years married” question to be the number of years since his first marriage, and then the number was copied to Zilpha. She obviously did not get married at age 3.