Captain Archibald C. Lambert, a prominent farmer and stock- raiser of South Dover and a veteran of the Civil War, was born in this town, December 31, 1832, son of Benjamin and Clarissa (Bragg) Lambert. He comes of English origin. The grandfather, Paul Lambert, who was one of the first settlers of South Dover, came from Winthrop, Kennebec County, Maine, in 1808. He acquired a tract of five hundred acres of wild land, to which, after making a clearing and erecting a dwelling, he brought his family. In time the farm yielded bountiful crops, and he was able to furnish many of the pioneer settlers with seed and stock. One of the most industrious men of his day, despite the many setbacks that fell to the lot of a pioneer, he was quite successful, and was able to give a farm to each of his sons. He was a Whig in politics and a Baptist in his religion. The maiden name of his wife was Mercy Dexter. She became the mother of seven sons and three daughters, all of whom settled in the neighborhood of the homestead. Of these, the only survivor is Stephen Lambert, who is now residing in Belvidere, Illinois. Paul Lambert died at the age of seventy-three years, and his wife lived to be ninety-six.
Benjamin Lambert, Captain Lambert’s father, born in Winthrop in June, 1808, who was reared to farm life in South Dover, spent his active years in tilling the soil. He took a deep interest in the general welfare of the community. One of the first to join the Republican movement in Dover, he assisted in forming the first local organization, and he supported that party vigorously. He died January 29, 1890, in his eighty-second year. His family consisted of seven children, namely: Clarissa, who married Captain Melborn P. Smith, and died March 9, 1875; Shepard, who enlisted in a Wisconsin regiment for service in the Civil War, and was accidentally shot in 1862; Archibald C., the subject of this sketch; Frances, who is now Mrs. Withee, and resides in Wisconsin; Lydia, now Mrs. Coburn, of Indiana; Henry H., who lives in California; and Amelia, now Mrs. Sanborn, also residing in Indiana. Mrs. Benjamin Lambert is no longer living.
Archibald C. Lambert attended the district schools of his native town, and grew to manhood as a farmer. He remained upon the home farm assisting his father until the second year of the Rebellion, when he raised Company I, Twenty-second Regiment, Maine Volunteers, and was mustered into service as its Captain on September 24, 1862. His regiment was sent to the Lower Mississippi, where it took part in the battles of Baton Rouge and Irish Bend and in the siege of Port Hudson. With the exception of eight days spent in the Marine Hospital at New Orleans, Captain Lambert remained at the head of his company until his discharge in 1863. In 1864 he went to California, where he remained a year. Upon his return to Dover he resumed farming, which he has since followed with success. He owns two hundred and fifty acres of excellent tillage and pasture land, and is an extensive breeder of cattle and horses. A stallion belonging to him was awarded first premium at the State Fair in 1892. One of the most able and practical agriculturists in this section, he ranks among the leading stock-raisers of Dover. In poll: tics he is a Republican. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and a comrade of Doughty Post, G. A. R.
On January 1, 1857, Captain Lambert was joined in marriage with Eliza J. Ames, who was born in Bradford, Maine, January 17, 1836, daughter of the Rev. Moses and Rebecca (Strout) Ames. Her father, born in the same town, December 8, 1811, died in South Dover, September 30, 1860. Her mother, who was born in Limerick, Maine, December 22, 1811, died in South Dover, April 3, 1876. Moses and Rebecca Ames reared four children, namely: Royal, born November 4, 1833, who died January 7, 1861 ; Eliza J., now Mrs. Lambert; Abbie M., born May 19, 1838, who is now the wife of Alfred Bragg, of Dover; and Joseph M., born August 25, 1841, who is a resident of East Corinth, Maine. Captain and Mrs. Lambert have had three children: Freddie C., born August 8, 1861, who died at the age of nineteen months; Charlie A., born April 6, 1870, who died at the age of four years; and Cora R., the eldest, who was born October 9, 1857. Cora married the Rev. Wilson W. Hayden, a graduate of Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, who now resides in Madison, Maine. She has one son, Archibald L. Hayden. Captain and Mrs. Lambert attend the Free Will Baptist church.
Source: Biographical review: containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine. Boston: Biographical Review Publishing Company, 1898.