I was born June 23, 1856 at or on Crooked Creek, Washington County, Iowa, about 3 1/2 miles southeast of Crawfordsville, Crawford Township, three-quarters of a mile North of the Henry County line in R. A. Young's timber.  My father and C.A. Smith owned and operated a saw mill at the time, and my father was the sawyer and lived at the mill.  A tornado struck the house and partially unroofed it the night I was born, and did wreck Asbury Church, which was being erected where Asbury Cemetery now is located.  The church was rebuilt, but has since been abandoned.  Owing to that storm, and the house being injured, my Mother got wet and contracted what then was called "Hasty Consumption", and passed away before I was three years of age.
         Jacob Lambing, my father, and my mother, Sarah Jane Reed, were married at South Charleston, Ohio, July 4, 1855, by a Methodist minister named Hipes, but soon went to Iowa, where they remained until I was near one year of age, then returned to South Charleston, Ohio, where mother passed away at the very young age of 22 years, 8 months and 5 days.  My father largely reared me until I was about 12 1/2 years old when he married Margret C. Evans of West Virginia, a splendid woman, and a most wonderful stepmother.  I can truthfully say that had my father married this same grand woman seven years earlier, we would have had much better conditions in our home.

         My Grandfather, John Troxel Lambing went west and located some twelve miles from Lancaster on the Hocking River where my Father was born March 13, 1833 and died February 27, 1907, near 74 years of age.  His last wife, Margret C. Lambing, lived until August 1, 1919.  My Grandfather was French Roman Catholics, but singular as it may seem, married a Protestant wife.  Of my father's family, only two remained Catholic, and I was told by Charles L. Lambing of Cory, PA., that his family was much the same, he himself being Presbyterian, although there were two Priests on his side; Rev. A.A.Lambing of Wilkinsburg, PA., and his brother, Michael Lambing of Scottsdale, PA., while the father of Charles L., John Lambing and his Brother James, were brothers of the Priests.  I frequently visited my Grandfather and Grandmother Lambing's home and some of my information was obtained of them.  My Grandfather Reed had passed on before I was born, but I enjoyed many years of affiliation with my mother's mother, Nancy Marshall Reed, who lived until all three of my children were born.

         I grew up after my mother passed on, in South Charleston and London, Ohio, Clark and Madison Counties, and all of my schooling was at those two towns, and closed near my seventeenth year.  Up until this time I did most anything that was available and at any price that was offered me both in town or on farms.  I learned to plow corn with single shovel plow and one horse, also harrowed with oxen, carried chain with a Surveyor's outfit, cleaned chicken houses, etc.  I had to earn my own clothes very early in life.  My father taught me to work very young, for which I now thank him deeply, for at from eight to twelve years old, I was doing vastly more than the average town boy of sixteen and over.  At fifteen, I was making full hand with a Surveyor's gang and drawing full pay.  As all help had to furnish their own transportation, father would awaken me as early as three in the morning to get up and walk from three to nine miles and be ready to work, do a full days work and get home any way that I could.  Sometimes I did get a ride, but more often walked both ways.  We lived in Ohio until I was between sixteen and seventeen years old, when we moved to Idaho.

         Uncle I.P.Lambing of Boise, Idaho, father's brother, two and one half years older than father, visited us at London, Ohio, in the winter time and prevailed on father to go back with him and become a sawyer at the Lambing and Rossi Saw Mill on Shaffers Creek, some 25 miles in the mountains between Boise and Payette, and father came and brought me along.  This was not long after the Historic Chicago fire.  I remember seeing the terrific desolation, and hearing folks saying, "This will ruin Chicago."  But it just started it on the way toward one of America's largest cities.

         The first season in Idaho, I worked at the saw mill.  My Uncle lived in the house that is in the same location, still standing in present Ridenbaugh Lumber Yard at Boise.  Lemps Brewery was just across the street.  Milton Kelly was owner and Editor of the Boise Statesman at the time.  L.F. Cartes was Surveyor General of Idaho Territory, and lived close to the Lumber Yard, so I asked him one day, if there was any chance to get on the Surveying Gang.  He told me that he was Surveyor General and did no field work and that all practical work was contract, but that I might see Al Thompson, who represented Dave Thompson, his brother, of Oregon City, Oregon.  I met Mr. Thompson at five o'clock that evening at Mr. Cartee's office, told him my desire.  He looked me over very quickly and remarked that I was pretty young as well as quite slim.  I was greatly set back by his answer and told him that I had followed longer legged men than he was all day in Ohio and did plenty of extra walking besides.  "Well, he said, "wait here.  I will be back at once and we will see if you know anything about chaining."  Se he came back with a 33 foot chain and asked me if I knew what it was.  I said, "yes sir! it is a half chain." "Correct", said he.  "Can you pay it?" "Yes, Sir" said I.  "Let me see you do it."  So I untied the buckskin string attached to one of the handles and around the chain proper, and holding both handles in one had, threw the double chain straight out on the ground, then throwing one of the handles full length, the chain was payed.  "Can you read it," he asked.  I said yes, and proceeded to do so.  "Every ten links there is a brass toggle." "Now take it up" he said.  I went to the middle toggle and commenced to fold the chain with my right hand, holding the contents in the left hand, then with buckskin string tied as it was handed to me.  He looked somewhat puzzled, then asked where I had learned to chain.  I told him with Johnathan P. Arnett of London, Ohio.  "Well", said he, "you have had the tuition of the leader of his day in Civil Engineering.  I know him well by reputation.  Be ready next Monday morning and we will take to the field."  I was there, and worked two seasons, the first under Al Thompson as compassman, and one with A. L. Rynearson, who lived many years in Boise afterward.

         In October, 1875 at the age of nineteen I left Idaho going to Iowa, Henry County, Wayne Township.  I landed there November 2nd, and in a short time, I met Miss Irene Adalaide Smith, whose father was my father's partner in the saw mill where I was born.  She was five years younger than I, and I was just past 19.  Hence I waited until she grew up, but we were married December 11, 1878 at her parent's home and with their blessing.

         I had saved of my earnings enough to pay for 120 acres of land in Webster County, Nebraska, and had money to build a house 16 x 24, and on April 11th, she prepared our first meal on her 18th birthday, using a store box for a table, ours having been wrecked in shipping, and I have never seen any dining table since that date that suited me as that one did.  No King in any Royal Family ever had a FINER QUEEN.

         Hot winds, hail and grasshoppers caused our stay to be shorter than we expected, so in May 1880, in a covered wagon with our first baby, Herbert Lambing, we landed at Mrs. Lambing's father's home with all this world's possessions in or attached to that wagon drawn by a small team of mules.  Mrs. Lambing's father knew we were coming back, and after we were on the way, he found that ten acres of clover had winter killed on a farm that he was agent for, and had planted it to early corn, following the plow with the planter, hence no harrowing.  He told me that if I would cultivate it and give one third to the owner of the land, that the balance was mine.  My harrow was taken apart and bolted to the wagon, but I lost no time in taking it off and placing it together once more ready for action.  I allowed the mules two days of rest, then found the corn was sufficiently large to harrow.  I practically lived in that field of corn until it was too large to work any more and it yielded 75 bushels per acre.  It was a small variety but very early maturing.  I fed it all to Poland China pigs with unusual results, and made a nice piece of money.

         I rented 80 acres of land at Swedesburg, Iowa for the next season, and did well on that.  Then in 1882, I rented 80 acres on the Washington and Henry County line, of Joseph Laird, and on September 11th, our daughter, Alta Elizabeth, was born.  She is now Mrs. Alta Strain, and is living at Weiser, Idaho, and has three daughters and one son, all grown and married.

         I had been quite successful in farm and livestock business and had a little cash on hand and moved to a farm I bought, four miles from New Market, Taylor County.  Our third and last child was born there on July 14, 1885, and is married and lives at Long Beach, California.  He is Ira S. Lambing, proprietor of the Lambing Oil Company.

         In 1887, I contracted with James M. Pierce of the Iowa Homestead at Des Moines, IA, to leave my farm in Taylor County, and go on the road as his advertising solicitor entirely a new experience, and with no one to teach me the business.  I was to travel Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and Kansas, the first four months.  I wished many times that I was back on my farm.  I worked hard but had not grasped the know how, and was very much discouraged, but my wonderful helpmate, Mrs. Lambing (always my inspiration) insisted that she knew that it was in me to do anything that I undertook, so with her confidence and wonderful faith, I vowed that I would make a success, hence by very close application to business, I finally found some of the secrets of my work, which lasted a goodly number of years.

         I moved from Des Moines to West Liberty, Iowa, remaining until February 1906,  when we closed our West Liberty property except 196 acres of land near Downey, Iowa and moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and on June 20th following our arrival, Mrs. Lambing passed away, without any expectancy, with heart trouble.  I remained in Cedar Rapids until February 1910, then moved to Twin Falls, Idaho to the property that I now occupy and probably always will.