Rufus Alexander Lambert

The above rustic-looking gentleman is Rufus Alexander Lambert, my Third Great-Grandfather. 

He was born November 17,1847 and died July 24, 1921, living his entire life in Stanly County, North Carolina. 

Rufus farmed in the Almond Township, in the Western part of Stanly County. 





Rufus was the second son of William "Buck" Lambert and Talitha Matilda Delphia Herrin Lambert. He was the grandson of John Quincy Lambert and his wife, Mary Almond Lambert and on his mother's side, he was the grandson of Hezekiah Herrian and his wife Amelia "Milly" Hatley Herrin.

Caleb Wiley Lambert, older brother of Rufus

Rufus first shows up in the 1850 census as a two year old with his older brother, Caleb Wiley Lambert and his two young parents.

Name:	Rufus A Lambert
Age:	2
Birth Year:	abt 1848
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1850:	Almonds, Stanly, North Carolina, USA
Gender:	Male
Family Number:	482
Household Members:	Name Age William Lambert 26 Tilla Lambert 24 Wiley Lambert 4 Rufus A Lambert 2

Neighbors were Grandfather John Lambert, David and Ruth Starnes and some Almonds and Eudy's.

By 1860, the family has grown, and they appear to have moved.

Name:	Rufus Lambert
Age:	12
Birth Year:	abt 1848
Gender:	Male
Home in 1860:	Stanly, North Carolina
Post Office:	Albemarle
Dwelling Number:	74
Family Number:	74
Attended School:	Yes
Household Members:	Name Age William Lambert 35 Tilly Lambert 30 Caleb Lambert 14 Rufus Lambert 12 Leah Lambert 9 William Lambert 6 Mary Lambert 4 Martha Lambert 1

Neighbors now included John T. Howell and William R. Howell, Caleb Osbourne and Wilson Hartsell. Rufus now has three little sisters, Leah, Mary and Martha and a younger brother John William Lambert.


Then came the War. William "Buck" Lambert served in Company H. 42nd Regiment. His oldest son Wiley, served in Company K, 28th regiment. Rufus did not serve. He was 14 at the onset of the war. It is assumed he stayed home and helped his mother take care of the farm and younger children.

Name:	William Lambert
Side:	Confederate
Regiment State/Origin:	North Carolina
Regiment:	42nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
Company:	H
Rank In:	Private
Rank Out:	Private
Film Number:	M230 roll 22

In 1870, William "Buck" Lambert is shown living in the same area as before, with his wife Talithat and children Julia (Leah), John William, Mary and Martha, and three more have joined the family since the end of the Civil War, Sarah, Josephine and Milly, named for her maternal grandmother.

Name	William Lambert
Age in 1870	46
Birth Year	abt 1824
Birthplace	North Carolina
Dwelling Number	36
Home in 1870	Almond, Stanly, North Carolina
Race	White
Gender	Male
Occupation	Farmer
Male Citizen Over 21	Y
Personal Estate Value	500
Real Estate Value	700
Inferred Spouse	Talitha Lambert
Inferred Children	Julia Lambert
Household Members	Name Age Talitha Lambert William Lambert Julia Lambert William Lambert Mary Lambert Martha Lambert Sarah Lambert Josephine Lambert Milly Lambert

But two oldest sons, Wiley and Rufus are not there. Caleb Wiley Lambert married Martha Eudy on November 29, 1863, in the heat of the war. He made it home and had started farming on his own.

Rufus "Mack" Lambert was not to be found that year. I believe he was close by, however. He may have been working for a neighbor or relative as farm labor and was missed.

On December 5, 1872 Rufus Alexander Lambert married Sarah Ann Burris.

Name:	Rufus Lambert
Gender:	Male
Marriage Date:	5 Dec 1872
Marriage Place:	Stanly, North Carolina, USA
Spouse:	Sarah Ann Burris
Spouse Gender:	Female
Event Type:	Marriage

Sarah was the daughter of  Solomon Burris (son of Taylor) and Elizabeth Morton. The family gene pool gets a little murky here. I also notated Solomon Burris as the son of Taylor, as there were multiple Solomon Burris's in Stanly County, going back to Taylor Burris's father Solomon Burris the Revolutionary War Veteran. He was married to Judith Taylor, whose maiden name her son Taylor carried as his Christian name.

So, Solomon Burris, Patriot, was the grandfather of Solomon Burris who married Elizabeth Morton.









Now, before I go back stirring up that pot of murky soup, I want to harken back to my  discovery that my paternal Grandfather Lambert was already descended from two of Solomon Burris  the Patriot and Judith Taylors children. His mother was Rowena Burris, who married Elias Lambert, the son of Rufus Alexander and Sarah Ann Burris.

Rowena's Family Tree to Solomon and Judith Taylor Burris looks like this:


                                                            Rowena Burris Lambert

                                                                         -   Parents -

                                         Father                                                 Mother

                               David T. Burris                                       Ellen Honeycutt
               
                            Grandparents

Gideon Greene  Burris                     Obedience Hathcock

     Great Grandparents                     Great Grandparents

Solomon Burris Jr.                            Benjamin Franklin Hathcock 
             &                                                                 &                                
Sarah Morgan                                    Nancy Ann Burris  

Parents of Solomon Burris Jr. and of Nancy Ann Burris, Rowena's Great Great Grandparents were:

Solomon Burris, The Patriot and Judith Taylor Burris. Gideon Greene Burris and Obedience Hathcock were first cousins. 

And now we are adding that Elias Lamberts mother was Sarah Ann Burris. 

Sarah Ann Burris was the Granddaughter of Solomon and Judith through their son Taylor, giving my grandfather now 3 lines back to them.


To look at it in another way:

            Taylor                    Solomon Jr                    Nancy Ann    -Siblings

          Solomon  III           Gideon G.           +           Obedience      -First cousins

         Sarah Ann                                            David T. (son of Gideon & Bedie)  - Second Cousins

        Elias            -   who married ---               Rowena      -  Third Cousins.


So alot of Burris lines there, but Elias and Rowena were distant cousins.



Rufus acquired his first track of land in 1878 at the age of 31 when he purchased 33 and a half acres from John Q. Lambert and his wife E. E. Lambert. This was John Quincy Lambert Jr. who married Eunice Ellen "Nicey" Whitley, a relative of Rufus. This tract was on Running Creek and bordered William Lambert, Nathan Lambert and W J Carter.

By 1880 Rufus and Sarah had added 4 children to their family. Neighbors were William J. Carter, his younger brother John William Lambert and John W. Harvell.

Name:	Rufus A. Lambert
Age:	32
Birth Date:	Abt 1848
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1880:	Furrs, Stanly, North Carolina, USA
Dwelling Number:	232
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Self (Head)
Marital Status:	Married
Spouse's Name:	Sarah A. Lambert
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Occupation:	Farmer
Neighbors:	View others on page
Household Members:	Name Age Rufus A. Lambert 32 Sarah A. Lambert 30 Jennette C. Lambert 6 Eli M. Lambert 4 James F. Lambert 2 Albert L. Lambert 10/12

Children were Jenette "Jenny" C Lambert (1874), Elias Marion (1875), James Franklin (1877) and baby Albert L. Lambert, who was born that August and would die in 1881 at the age of 2.

Albet is buried at Lambert Cemetery # 1 in the Lambert Community in Western Stanly County.


His tombstone reads "This child is a son of Rufus and Sarah Burris. Diseast by blood by the flu."
Born: 19 Aug 1879  Died 23 Aug 1881.

On January 25, 1882, Rufus bought a tract of land from his parents, William and Talitha Lambert, of 129 acres, part of which Talitha had recieved from her father, Hezekiah Herrin in 1851, on Stony Run Creek. The land bordered William J. Carter, brother John William Lambert, Leonard Lambert and his parents.






In 1884, he bought a tract of land from his brother-in-law James M. Burris and wife Jane, on the west side of Little Bear Creek of  95 acres, bordering the property of Solomon Burris, A C Burris, called the "John Almond Tract".

On January 5, 1887, he bought 100 acres for $250 from his parents-in-law, Solomon Burris and Elizabeth Morton Burris on Hay Meadow Branch (Book 19 Page 497) bordering Solomon Burris and the lands of Edmund Almond heirs.

In the meantime, Rufus and Sarah added two more children to the fold:

William Solomon Lambert was born on June 7, 1882, named for his two grandfathers, William "Buck" Lambert and Solomon Burris III.

Talitha Elizabeth Lambert was born on June 21, 1884, named for her two grandmothers, Talitha Herrin Lambert and Elizabeth Morton Burris.

Talitha did not appear with her parents in any census as she was born after the 1880 census and married before the 1900. On February 2, 1899 she married Jonah Lee  Burleson. Unfortunately, she did not live very long. About two weeks after giving birth to her fifth child child, a daughter named for her, she passed away at the age of 25.

Sarah's youngest daughter suffered the same fate as her mother, because Sarah also passed away young.




On December 9, 1885, Sarah Ann Burris Lambert passed away at the age of 35. She was buried at the old Wiggins Cemetery off of Sam Road in the Endy Community.

The next fact in this story may seem a bit strange for us, in this day and age. On December 10, 1885, the day after he buried his first wife, Sarah, Rufus A. Lambert, 38, the father of 5 young living children, married Martha M. Morton, the 20 year old daughter of Jesse and Morning Morton.

The wedding was performed at Snotherly's Store in Almond Township by D. A. S. Hatley, Justice of the Peace. Witnesses were W. A. Tucker, R. W. Moody, J. A. Almond.

This seems a bit rushed, huh? Perhaps the survivial of his children depended on it. It was obviously a very rushed arranged marriage.

Martha J Morton was born on March 30, 1865 in Hardin County, Tennessee, where her father, Jesse A. Morton had migrated to from Stanly County, prior to 1860. He had married Morning Ellen Saunders there and the oldest 4 children of their marriage had been born there. By 1870, Jesse had returned to North Carolina, living in Long Creek, Mecklenburg County. By 1880, he was back in Stanly County in the Almonds Community, now with a family of 6 children.




Rufus would add another 8 children to his family from his marriage to Martha. They were:

1888 Fetzer J Lambert
1891 Ephraim Levi Lambert
1893 Wiley Jerome Lambert
1896 Morning Ellen Lambert
1895 Hettie Cornelia Lambert
1902 Theodore Roosevelt Lambert
1904 Mary Jane Lambert
1907 Martin Rufus Lambert

The 1900 census has Rufus and his new wife living in Almond Township. Her name is given as Morina, probably a middle name. With them are two of his older children, Jenny and J. F. and the 5 of his younger children as 3 had not been born yet.

Name:	Rufus A Lambeth [Rufus A Lambert]
Age:	50
Birth Date:	Nov 1849
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1900:	Almond, Stanly, North Carolina
Sheet Number:	4
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:	66
Family Number:	67
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Married
Spouse's Name:	Morina Lambeth
Marriage Year:	1885
Years Married:	15
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Occupation:	Farmer
Months not employed:	0
Can Read:	Yes
Can Write:	Yes
Can Speak English:	Yes
House Owned or Rented:	O
Home Free or Mortgaged:	M
Farm or House:	F
Neighbors:	View others on page
Household Members:	Name Age Rufus A Lambeth 50 Morina Lambeth 35 Genetta Lambeth 26 James F Lambeth 22 Fetzer J Lambeth 12 Ephriam L Lambeth 9 Wiley J Lambeth 7 Morning Lambeth 4 Hettie C Lambeth 1

By 1910, the Lambert Farmhouse was getting a little crowded.

Name:	Rufus A Lambert
Age in 1910:	62
Birth Year:	abt 1848
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1910:	Almond, Stanly, North Carolina
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Married
Spouse's Name:	Martha Lambert
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Native Tongue:	English
Occupation:	Farmer
Industry:	General Farm
Employer, Employee or Other:	Own Account
Home Owned or Rented:	Own
Home Free or Mortgaged:	Free
Farm or House:	Farm
Able to Read:	Yes
Able to Write:	Yes
Years Married:	24
Neighbors:	View others on page
Household Members:	Name Age Rufus A Lambert 62 Martha Lambert 43 Jennie Lambert 36 Fetzer Lambert 22 Lillie Lambert 22 Levi Lambert 19 Wiley Lambert 16 Maurning Lambert 15 Hettie Lambert 11 Theodore Lambert 8 Mary Jane Lambert 5 Martin Lambert 2 Johnie Lambert 0 Tibitha Burleyson 0 Maurning Morton 66

Jennie, the oldest daughter, was still unmarried and living at home. Fetzer had married, to Lillie and his young bride was living with them. The youngest three children had been born, Martin being only two. Morning Morton, Martha's mother, was living with them, along with two grandchildren.

Talitha Burleson was the daughter of  Rufus and Sarah's youngest daughter, Talitha, who had passed away. Johnie Lambert was an infant grandson I have not yet identified. It is possible he was a son of Fetzer and Lillie that did not survive childhood. I am continuing to search for any more information on him.

New technology was not lost on Great Great Grandpa Rufus Lambert. In 1907, he is listed as living in Bloomington, which is now just a sign along the old Austin Road designating its location, one of rolling hills and ranch style housed. R. A. Lambert had a telephone with the Locust Exchange. His number was 22. This was during a time when very few people had a telephone.




The Enterprise
(Albemarle, North Carolina)02 May 1907, Thu  • Page 4

1920 is the last census that Rufus Alexander Lambert appeared in. The family was living along the Charlotte Road in Endy, a community just outside of Albemarle about 5 miles.

Name:	R A Lambert
Age:	72
Birth Year:	abt 1848
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1920:	Endy, Stanly, North Carolina
Street:	Charlotte Road
House Number:	Farm
Residence Date:	1920
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Married
Spouse's Name:	Martha Lambert
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Able to Speak English:	Yes
Occupation:	Farmer
Industry:	General Farm
Employment Field:	Employer
Home Owned or Rented:	Own
Home Free or Mortgaged:	Free
Able to Read:	Yes
Able to Write:	Yes
Neighbors:	View others on page
Household Members:	Name Age R A Lambert 72 Martha Lambert 56 Theadore Lambert 17 Mary Jane Lambert 15 Martin Lambert 13 Elvie Lambert 18 Lula Lambert 13 Jenie Burris 45 Wm Davis 5

Living with him was his second wife, Martha, and their three youngest children, Theodore, Mary Jane and Martin. Also living with them was oldest daughter Jennie and her son William Davis. She had been widowed twice, having married Martin Burris after the death of her first husband, William Jacob Davis. Elvie Lambert was a daughter-in-law and Lula Lambert was a grand-daughter.

Lula was the daughter of James H. Lambert, who had died in 1913. Lula would thereafter live with her Aunts and Uncles, having lost her mother young, to TB. She was living with William in 1930 and Eli in 1940. She also died young, at age 36, her death certificate giving a hint as to why she was unable to work or marry. She had been suffering from infantile paralysis for 33 years from something that had happened at age 3, which eventually was given as her cause of death.




Elvie was the first wife of Theodore Lambert. They had married very young.

Burley Lambert, my Grandfather and a Grandson of Rufus A. Lambert

Rufus passed away on July 24, 1921 at the age of 73. His death certificate stated he had become paralyzed on the right side. The seventies were a grand old age to live to in the 1920's, so I'm sure the physicians attributed it to old age.

His widow, Martha Molina Morton Lambert, his second wife, would live another 22 years. Her parents were from Stanly County, according to her death certificate, but Martha was born in Tennessee. She is not my direct line, but a Step-Great Great Grandmother, but this was an interesting twist, so I decided to look a little close into who Martha was.

Martha was the daughter of Jesse Alexander Morton and Morning Ellen (or Ellendar) Saunders Morton. Jesse Morton was born in Stanly County, North Carolina, the son of Joseph Calvin and Margaret "Peggy" Hatley Morton. In 1850, he was an 11 year old living with his parents and large group of siblings in the Almond Community.

Name:	Jessee Morton
Age:	21
Birth Year:	abt 1839
Gender:	Male
Birth Place:	North Carolina
Home in 1860:	District 14, Hardin, Tennessee
Post Office:	Bonnough
Dwelling Number:	1555
Family Number:	1611
Occupation:	Com Laborer
Cannot Read, Write:	Y
Household Members:	Name Age J A Rupell 33 Jennetta R Rupell 34 Daniel S Rupell 10 Robert B Rupell 6 Marion B Rupell 3 Pleasant A Rupell 11/12 P A Smith Rupell 35 Jessee Morton 21

By 1860, for unknown reasons, he had left North Carolina for Tennesee and was working as farm labor for J. A. Russell  in Hardin County, Tennesee. There he met Morning E. Saunders.

Name:	Maria Sunden [Maria Sanders]  [Sanders]
Age:	35
Birth Year:	abt 1815
Birthplace:	Kentucky
Home in 1850:	District 2, Hardin, Tennessee, USA
Gender:	Female
Family Number:	99
Household Members:	Name Age Jesse Michell 58 Mary Michell 58 Eleaner Michell 32 Jesse Michell 10 John Michell 8 Maria Sunden 35 Mary Sunden 14 Manning Sunden 8 William Sunden 5 Charlette Sunden 2

Morning was the daughter of Mariah Mitchell Saunders and an unknown Mr. Saunders. Her father died before 1850 and in the 1850 census, Mariah and her 4 children, were living with her parents, Jesse and Mary "Polly" Cooley Mitchell in Hardin County, Tennesee. Both Jesse and Polly were born in North Carolina (Stokes County), but had married in 1811 in Kentucky, where Mariah was born. The family moved around a bit, because the oldest 3 children of Mariah and Mr. Saunders, Mary, Morning and William, were born in Alabama, while only the youngest, Nancy Charlotte "Lottie" (who would later become Mrs. Thomas J. Cupples) was born in Tennesee.

Mariah would remarry to Stephen Gilbert in Hardin County, a widower with a large family himself, and have more children by 1860, where Morning and William are found living with them while Mary has married and Lottie is still living with her Grandmother Polly Mitchell, Aunt Elenor and cousins John W. and Jesse C. Mitchell.

Name:	J Alex Morton
Age in 1870:	28
Birth Year:	abt 1842
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Dwelling Number:	4
Home in 1870:	Long Creek, Mecklenburg, North Carolina
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Occupation:	Farmer
Male Citizen Over 21:	Y
Personal Estate Value:	50
Inferred Spouse:	Morning Morton
Inferred Children:	Joseph A Morton  Morgana Morton  Martha J Morton  Margaret Morton
Household Members:	Name Age J Alex Morton 28 Morning Morton 27 Joseph A Morton 9 Morgana Morton 7 Martha J Morton 4 Margaret Morton 2

After marrying in Hardin County, Tennessee, Jesse decides to move his family back to North Carolina. Based and where records reveal the children were born, we can determine this happened about, between 1867 and 1870.

1860 Joseph Alexander Morton, Hardin County, Tennesee
1863 Mary Ann Morgana Morton, Hardin County, Tennesee
1865 Martha Molina Morton, Hardin County, Tennesee
1867 Margaret A Morton, Hardin County, Tennesee

Found on Long Creek, Mecklenburg County, NC in 1870. The three younger children, William A., Eva Tennesee and Sylvester, were all born in North Carolina, William in Mecklenburg and Eva and Sylvester in Stanly County. By the time Rufus Alexander Lambert married Martha Morton, the family had settled back in the Almond Community where Jesse Morton had grown up.

Name:	Lambert Martha Almond [Martha Lambert]  [Lambert Mattha Almond]
Birth Year:	abt 1864
Gender:	Female
Race:	White
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Marital Status:	Widowed
Relation to Head of House:	Mother-in-law
Home in 1930:	Almond, Stanly, North Carolina, USA
Map of Home:	View Map
House Number:	apr 22
Dwelling Number:	222
Family Number:	239
Attended School:	No
Able to Read and Write:	No
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	Tennessee
Able to Speak English:	Yes
Household Members:	Name Age Ezra Almond 35 Mornen Almond 34 Newel Almond 6 Jewel Almond 6 Lambert Martha Almond 66

In 1930, Martha was found living with her daughter, Morning Lambert Almond, named for her grandmother, Martha's mother Morning E. Saunders Morton.

Name:	Martha Lombert
Age:	75
Estimated birth year:	abt 1865
Gender:	Female
Race:	White
Birthplace:	Tennessee
Marital Status:	Widowed
Relation to Head of House:	Mother
Home in 1940:	Endy, Stanly, North Carolina
Map of Home in 1940:	View Map
Inferred Residence in 1935:	Endy, Stanly, North Carolina
Residence in 1935:	Same House
Sheet Number:	4B
Attended School or College:	No
Highest Grade Completed:	None
Neighbors:	View others on page
Household Members:	Name Age William S Lombert 58 Rettie L Lombert 40 Thomas R Lombert 22 Jenie D Lombert 18 Lays Lombert 16 Martha Lombert 75

In 1940, she has moved in with the family of William Solomon Lambert, her stepson. Martha dies on June 18, 1943 and lies beside Rufus Lambert in the Canton Church Cemetery.

The following is a list of the descendants of Rufus Alexander Lambert as best as I can determine, children and grandchildren, nearly all deceased. Great Grandchildren for the most part, are still living.

Rufus Alexander Lambert (1847-1921)
  Married 1st Sarah Ann Burris (1850-1885)

1) Jennette C "Jenny" Lambert (1874-1958)
     Married 1911 William Jacob Davis (Randolph County, NC)
       A) William Alexander Davis (1914-1987)
     Married 1917 Martin Luther Burris Sr. (1858-1918) Brother of Rowena Burris who married Elias Lambert

2) Elias Marion Lambert (1875-1943)
    Married 1894 Rowena L. Burris (1872-1915)
    A) William Rufus Lambert (1895-1974)
    B) Beulah E. Lambert (1897-1979) (Mrs. Jesse Lee Burris, Mrs. Monroe David Sides, Mrs. Charlie Maxwell Brown). 
       C) Roy Lee Lambert (1898-1974)
    D) Roby Lambert (1900-1902) probably named Robert, but died as a toddler.
       E) Cheldy David Lambert (1901-1959) US Army Retired, Fort Bragg
    F) Mathew Marion Lambert (1904-1986)
   G) Claude Duncan Lambert (1907-1975)
   H) Toffey Lambert (1908-1912) 4 years old. In photograph, a beautiful child. Died of illness.
      I)  Fred Lee Lambert (1911-1965)
   J)  Lucille Lambert (1913-1978) Mrs. Charlie Sides
   K) Burley Melvin Lambert (1915-1986) His mother died shortly after his birth. He was raised mostly by his mother's sister, as a Smith. 

     Married 1918 Emma Fairybell Honeycutt (Widow of James E. Eury, came with 2 children, Rosetta and Walter Eury)  
   L) Lilly Alma Lambert (1920-2002) (Mrs. Emanuel Nesbit Carter, Mrs. Bratton Howard Burleson, Mrs. Hartsoe)
     M) Robert Earnest Lambert (1925-2000)
   N) Zora Bell Lambert (1927-2008) Mrs. William Robert Almond

3) James Franklin Lambert (1887-1913) 
     Married 1900 Henrietta "Hettie" Burleyson
    A) Lawson Lambert (1901-1919) Died as a teen, no descendants
    B) Clyde Lambert (1903-1922) Died at 19, no descendants.
       C) Esther Lambert (1904-1927) Married at 16 to Luther Farenton Furr (6 children, 3 lived to adulthood)  Died at age 22
        D) Lula Lambert (1906-1943) Never married. Crippled at age 3
        E) Unnamed Daughter (1908-1908) Died as infant
         F) Vernon Ray Lambert (1909-1978)
     G) Gladys Odessa Lambert (1912-1908) Mrs. Thomas Ivey Gottis

 * Note: Frank Lamberts children lost their father in 1913 and their mother in 1917. The 1920 census found Clyde living with his Maternal Uncle, Esther living with her Paternal Uncle, Lula living with her Grandfather Rufus Lambert and the younger two, Vernon and Gladys, were found in the Thomasville Baptist Orphanage in Thomasville, Davidson County, NC. Vernon would return to Albemarle and marry a Whitley and live out his life here. Gladys was still a minor and in 1930, is at the Kennedy Orphanage in Lenoir. She worked as a nurse in Raleigh before her marriage in 1935 to Thomas Ivey Gattis, who was from Raleigh. They married in Virginia but settled in Raleigh and lived out their lives there.

Below records the settlement, in 1923, of J. F. Lamberts' estate, mentioning his surviving children.

The Albemarle Press
(Albemarle, North Carolina)04 Jan 1923, Thu  • Page 3


4) Albert L. Lambert (1879-1881) Died as a toddler. Made the 1880 census and has a marked grave.
     


William Solomon Lambert, his first wife Jenny and their children.

5) William Solomon Lambert (1882-1964)
     Married 1898 Jenny Burleson (1881-1915)
     A) William Albert Lambert (1899-1988)
     B) Sarah Ann Lambert (1900-1985) (Mrs. Albert Oscar Furr - 5 children, Mrs. Claude Wilford Hatley -later in life.
         C) Rosa Belle Lambert (1902-1904) Died as a toddler
          D) Corinthia Lambert (1904-1983) Mrs. Joseph Virgil Kepley
          E  Wade Fonzo Lambert (1905-1965)
     F)  Cletus Lambert (1907-1990) 
     G) Marvin Lambert (1908-1909)
     H) Martha Mae Lambert (1910-2004) Mrs. Ben D. Eudy 3 children, Mrs Tom J Huneycutt

         Married 1915 Rettie Lou Lambert a distant cousin on both sides, daughter of James Mack Lambert and Tiney Burris Lambert 


          I)  Thomas Riley Lambert (1917-1995)
     J)  Richard Boone Lambert (1918-1991)
     K) Jennie Irene Lambert (1921-1996) Mrs. Earl Durant Whitley
         L)  Mary Lois Lambert (1924-1998) Mrs. Burley William Barbee
         M) Helen Alene Lambert (1929-1939) Age 9

 6) Talitha Elizabeth Lambert (1884-1909) Age 25
            Married 1899, Jonah Lee Burleyson (1881-1964) She was only 14
       A) Infant son (1900-1900)
       B) Theadosia "Dosie" Burleson (1902-1917) Age 15 
             C) Grover Simeon Burleyson (1904-1988)
       D) Richard Grover (or Gomillion) Burleyson/Harelson (1906-1985) * A bit confusing, see Note below. 
        E) Talitha Elizabeth Burleyson II (1909-1997) Mrs. Fred M. Story



            
 The Albemarle Press 
(Albemarle, North Carolina)01 Jan 1925, Thu  • Page 7

Note: The story of Richard G. Burleyson (or Burleson) / Harleson, is an interesting one indeed. As can be seen in the division above from 1925, he is listed as one of the three surviving children of Telitha Lambert Burleson and is listed as a Burleson. Curious, I had to know more about this cousin and why his name was changed. First, there is the middle name "G". Why, with his older brother clearly and consistently seen as "Grover Simeon Burleyson", would Telitha and Jonah have named the next son Richard Grover? The other seen 'G' was Gomilllion, which I've seen bounced around Stanly County, not commonly, but consistently. I tend to think it was Gomillion indeed, but when Richard joined the Army and became a man of the world, he serendipitously borrowed his older brothers more commonly accepted 'Grover'. The second issue is the last name Harelson. He was born a Burleson or Burleyson, as it is commonly interchangeable, even in the same family. 

ame:	Richard Burleson
Birth Year:	abt 1908
Gender:	Male
Race:	White
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Marital Status:	Married
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Home in 1930:	Albemarle, Stanly, North Carolina, USA
Map of Home:	View Map
Street address:	Second St.
House Number:	304
Dwelling Number:	258
Family Number:	265
Radio Set:	No
Lives on Farm:	No
Age at First Marriage:	22
Attended School:	No
Able to Read and Write:	Yes
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Able to Speak English:	Yes
Occupation:	Trudman
Industry:	Oil Co
Class of Worker:	Wage or salary worker
Employment:	Yes
Household Members:	Name Age Richard Burleson 22 Flora Burleson 22 Marie Burleson 5

In his first two census records as a minor, Richard is clearly a Burleson. Even after his marriage to Flora Belle Burleson in 1929,  he is still a Burleyson in 1930, however, his marriage license may have been a clue as to the families future.

Link to Marriage License of Richard and Flora Bell

The surname, Burleson, is very smeared and looks like it could be Harleson or Burleson, on Richards end. The marriage license is filed in Stanly County, NC, but took place in Darlington, SC. 

Then there is the whole issue with Flora Belle and the name confusion with her two husbands. It becomes an entire Burleson Soup. Flora Belle was born a Burleson. She was the daugther of David Rutherford Burleson and Wincie Ann Springer. She was the Granddaughter of Howell Burleson and Judith Burris Almond Burleson. She was the Great-Granddaughter of William "Billy" Burleson and his first wife Sarah "Sallie" Harwood Burleson.

The reason for all of that lineage will be seen in a moment.

Wade and Flora Bell Burleson

Flora Belle Burleyson married Richard Wade Burleson on March 3, 1923, in Stanly County, at the age of 15. That's right, a different Richard and another Burleson. Wade, as destiny would have it, was a double-Burleson. He was the son of Shem Burleson and Jane Alice Burleson. Shem was one of the twin sons (He had a brother named Ham...very biblical) of William "Billie" Burleson and his second wife, Rhoda Springer (also another Springer). So David and Shem were half-brothers, making Wade and Flora - half cousins? But that is only one side of the equation. Shem's wife, Jane Alice aka "Janie", was also a Burleson, a daughter of Noah H. and Sophronia Whitley Burleson and a granddaughter of Lee Burleyson and Elizabeth Almond Burleson. While more distant, Janie's line does lead back to the original Stanly County Buleson progenitors, the same as Billie's does.

Flora Belle and Wade had two children, Edith Marie, known as Marie (1924-1996) and Wade Clinton (1926-1926). Little Wade Clinton died at the age of 4 months of pneumonia.  The couple would divorce soon afterwards and Wade would move on to his second wife, Mary V. Hildreth, as his third child, Wade Jr. would be born in 1928. Richard Wade Burleson was as much a character as Richard G. Burleson Harelson. Flora Belle could pick those cousins! He would go on marry at least 5 different women and had between 14 and 17 children. He spent his last days in Davidson County, NC and is buried there. Richard Gomillion Grover Burleson/Harelson's father , Jonah Burleson, also spent his last days in Davidson County, living with his daugther, Talitha Burleson Story.

On April 30, 1929 , in Dillon County, South Carolina, Flora Belle Burleson would married another Richard Burleson, Richard G Burleson. This document, filed in Stanly County, would show a rather smeared Burleson beside Richards name. I wonder if this document was somehow used as ID when he entered the service, or if in S. C. there was just too much Burleson in the mix, that Richard readily welcomed the misreading of his surname and ran with it.

Burleson
Harelson

It's easy to see where a transcription error or a hastily written handwriting could misconstrue the two.

Jonah Lee  Burleson, who married Talitha Lambert, was the son of Adam Burleson and Sarah Poplin Burleson and the Grandson of  Lee and Elizabeth Almond Burleson, so while he was not a close couisin of Flora Belle, but a distant Burleson relative all the same, he was a second cousin to Richard Wade Burleson on Wade's mother, Janie's side.

                                 Richard G -2nd cousins- Richard Wade

                                 son of                              son of
                              Jonah Lee Burleson           Janie Alice Burleson

                                 son of                              daughter of           
                             Adam Burleson  -brothers - Noah H. Burleson 

                                son of                                son of   
                                            Lee Burleson and
                                         Elizabeth Almond Burleson
                       



I was thinking that the name changing Richard deserved his own post, and decided to try and research him a bit deeper, when I discovered that just a month ago, someone had posted an entire story about him online already, a grandchild, Sandy Lee Wilson Martin, for The Burleson Family Research Group.  Richard Burleson/Harelson Mystery Explained:


History, Gossips and Lies - RG Harelson

And another story by Sandy Martin, this one on Flora Bell Burleson called, "The Silver Rope". 

The Silver Rope


Part Two: Rufus Alexander Lambert descendants, The Children of Rufus and Martha Morton Lambert. 

7) Fetzer J Lambert (1888-1971)
    Married 1909 Lillie Lowder ( 1887-1931)
    A) Edgar Lambert (1911-1988)
    B) Earnest Lambert (1913-1952)
    C) Henry Lambert (1916-1974)
    D) Ruth Lambert (1917-2001) Mrs. Ray E. Dick
       E) Grover Lambert (1920-2012)
    F) Bertha Lambert (1921-2001) Mrs Clyde W. Cagle
       G) Herman Lambert (1924-2000)
    H) Victoria Lambert (1925-2003) Mrs. William Edward McClendon
        I) Mildred Lambert (1930-2014) Mrs. Fred Alexander Barbee

8) Ephraim Levi Lambert (1891-1982)
     Married 1913 Evangelina "Evansy" Burris
     A) Elsie Lambert (1915-1992) Mrs. Marvin E. Hatley
         B) Julia Vann Lambert (1917-2004) Mrs. Martin Roy Bowers
         C) Pauline Lambert (1920-2017) Mrs. Marvin Thomas Bowers
          D) Buford Elsworth Lambert (1924-2011)
*Note: Three infants girls, all born in 1913 and one dying in 1920 have been attributed to Ephraim and Evansy Lambert, their names Pearlie, Autrybell and Minnie. I have not been able to verify that, and doubt the validity, as I can't find a tombstone, or any documentation and they are all born the year the couple were married. Noting it as it could be true they had tripletts the same year as they married in January of 1913.

 9) Wiley Jerome Lambert (1893-1977)
      Married 1913 Scrappie Lowder
      A) Rufus Franklin Lambert (1914-1980)
      B) Ruby Lee Lambert (1917-2008) Mrs. Merlin Clegg Swaringen (Wallace)
        C) Rosa Mae Lambert (1918-1983) Mrs. Theodore R. Smith
            D) Rachel Van Lambert (1919-1997) Morris
            E) Raymond Alexander "Dave" Lambert (1922-2009)
       F) Roxie Novella "Pete" Lambert (1925-2012) Mrs. Craven Coolidge Morton
            G) Alice Blue Lambert (1926-1952) Mrs. Leroy W. Melton
             H) Grace Helen Lambert (1927-1997) Mrs. Hubert J. Burleson
             I)  Katherine Rebecca Lambert (1930-1981) Mrs. Ned Wesley Love (Mrs Bozzone) Died in West Palm Beach Florida as did sister Rachel). 
              J) Beulah Ann Lambert (1934-2014) Mrs. Claudie Dale Mabe

10)  Morning (Mornen) Ellen Lambert (1896-1967)
        Married 1916 Ezra Cline Almond (1895-1974)
        A) Jewel Lambert-Almond (1924-1992) Mres Keith Nichols Carter
               B) Newell Lambert-Almond (1924-1971) 
        Note: Twins, see Theodore Roosevelt Lambert

    

Hettie Cornelia Lambert Almond family

            

            



         

          

     




        

       

    





11) Hettie Cornelia Lambert (1898-1973)
      Married 1915 Achillie "Killis" Almond
      A) Craven Poe Almond (1918-1955)
      B) Clyde Edward Almond (1920-2014)
      C) Edith Almond (1923-1927) died as a child
      D) Doris Ophelia Almond (b 1927) Mrs. Amos Cletus Burleson
      E) Billie Van Almond ( 1929-2008)
      F) Tommie Almond (b 1932)
      G) James Allen Almond (b1933-1934) died as a child




12) Theodore Roosevelt Lambert (1902-1984)
       Married 1919  Elva Burleson (1901-1924)
       A) Geneva Elliott Lambert (1920-2007) Mrs. George Beverly Martin, Mrs. Grady Columbus Honeycutt
        B) Velma Victoria Lambert (b 1922) Mrs. Roy Joseph Earnhardt
             C & D) Newell and Jewel Lambert Almond Twins, *See Morning Ellen Lambert
             Married 1925 Bertha Cumy Almond (1899-1988)
       E) Rufus Alton Lambert (1927-2011)
       F) Lucia Ricardo Lambert (1936) Mrs. Kenneth G. Small

       * Note: Theodore lost his young wife, Elvie, shortly after the twins, Newell and Jewell were born. He also had 4 year old Geneva and 2 year old Velma to take care of and was now left with 4 month old twins. He place the twins in the care of his older sister, Morning Ellen Lambert Almond, who was childless. She and her husband adopted the twins and raised them as their own. They were still in the same community and the twins grew up knowing who their biological parents and siblings were.





13) Mary Jane Lambert (1904-1995) 
      Married 1916 Paul Edward Herrin (1905-1973)
      A) UnNamed Girl Herrin (1924-1924)
      B) UnNamed Boy Herrin (1924-1924)
      

    
      C) Norman Carroll Herrin (1925-1926) Died as an infant from Whooping Cough
           D) Carrie Louvene Herrin (1927-1927) Died at 2 months old
            E) John Clegg Herrin (1932-2005)

14) Martin Rufus Lambert (1907-2003)
      Married 1928 Delsie Herrin (1901-2001)
      A) Max Leavern Lambert (1931-1934)
      

Rufus Alexander Lambert had 14 children and 82 grandchildren. Many of his grandchildren were born after he died and he never knew them. While his grandchildren that lived to adulthood had fewer children than he or their parents, most had at least 1 or 2, some more. It is a safe estimate to say his Great Grandchildren are double in number to his grandchildren. While the generations of his latter children are younger, and I descend from one of his younger children, in my direct line, he is a Great, Great, Great, Great Grandfather now.