Pioneers in the family tree. John Lambert.

My 16 great great grandparents could all be considered pioneers. Let me tell you about John Lambert, my maternal grandfather’s paternal grandfather.

He was born 31 January 1820 in Gargrave, Yorkshire, England. He never attended a school, never learned to read and write well, but he supported himself since his father died when he was 13. Four years later he joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

At age 20 he left England with his brother, Richard. The young men traveled on the sailing vessel North America over the Atlantic, in a steamship up the Hudson River to Albany, in horse-drawn flatboats on the Erie Canal, then by horse and wagon until they built a raft and navigated the Mississippi River to Nauvoo, Illinois.

John was a bodyguard to the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum Nauvoo Township, Hancock, Illinois, United States. His grandson Roy Lambert characterized him as a born fighter, strong and fast. Five feet eleven inches tall, he could stand and jump twelve feet. He professed to back up from no man, and had many to his credit. He wrestled and jumped with the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Confronted by an angry mob where Joseph was preaching, he saw an old white-haired man whose face shown as with a halo. The astonished mob stopped their charge, backed off, and Joseph and John passed through safely. He shared many stories about the Prophet with his children and grandchildren.

In 1846 He met a refined young lady sitting under a tree reading the Book of Mormon. Adelia Groesbeck’s Dutch ancestors arrived in America in 1620. She inherited a tradition of literacy that she passed on to her children and grandchildren.

He left Nauvoo in 1847, but later visited his brother, Richard, in Hancock County, Illinois. Then he returned to Jackson County, remained there until in the spring of 1850. Then went to Bethleham, north 350 miles, to the Missouri River, traveled with ox team. Then started for Salt Lake City, Utah, with ox team in the company of Thomas Johnson. arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah, 11 Sep 1850, where he worked as a mason, stockman and farmer. Brigham Young so appreciated his masonry skills, that he offered John a plot of land in downtown Salt Lake City. He opted instead for a pioneering opportunity in the foothills of the Uintah mountains.

He was respected and appreciated by the Ute Indians in the area. Like the Utes, he loved horses. He owned the strongest, fastest team in the territory.

According to family tradition, Brother Joseph was there to receive John when he died in Kamas, Utah, 25 November 1893.