In the House that Jack Built

The heat promised to be oppressive in the courtyard of the house that Jack built. Yet there was hope as guests stepped off the shuttle to receive a warm greeting by President’s Circle Chair and host Ken Stilwell, who honored the legacy of Jack Lambert by wearing a white collared shirt, dress jeans, and a ranch hat. Dark clouds gathered, providing relief from the sun during The Dude Wrangler, the Lady Archaeologist, and Martha’s Corral President’s Circle event on July 26, 2023 from 4-6 pm.

Anna Hargreaves, Drew Stewart, and Ruth Meria Noble enjoy the food while Jack Lambert looks on from old photographs on the wall. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

Forty-two guests explored the many rooms of the house where Jack and Marge Lambert lived and loved for decades while enjoying salmon, grape leaves, olives, and other delicacies along with a glass of wine or beer. Some stepped across the historic corral for a tour of the Marge Lambert Residence led by docent Johnnie Gillespie.

Typically inhabited by visiting scholars, it was a rare opportunity.

Among the guests were Larry and Barbara Good, who restored the corrals that give “Camino Corrales” its name. For more about the restoration, follow the link in the title Unveiling the Restored Jack Lambert Corral.

Dorothy Bracey was thanked for helping make it possible for Dr. Shelby Tisdale to visit and speak.

Larry and Barbara Good were acknowledged for their leadership in restoring the Jack Lambert Corrals. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

Guests gathered under a tent in the courtyard to listen to three researchers tell stories about the Lamberts. Independent architectural historian John Murphey opened with an overview of the life of Everett Vey Lambert (called Jack because he was a “Jack of all trades”) set in the context of the singing cowboy era of the Southwest in the early 1990s. Born in Okarche, Oklahoma in 1898, Jack took off on his horse at age 14, worked as a horse wrangler in Wyoming, built a bridge in Utah, and came to Santa Fe in 1918.

John looked up and thanked Jack as a crack of lightning, closely followed by a loud rumble of thunder, signified relief was on its way.

Independent architectural historian John Murphey recounts Jack’s colorful life. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

With author Dr. Shelby Tisdale, we celebrated the 2023 publication of her book No Place for a Lady: the Life Story of Archaeologist Marjorie F. Lambert. Recently retired as Director of the Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College, Shelby was a former Director of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture (MIAC) in Santa Fe. No stranger to the School for Advanced Research (SAR), Shelby was Assistant Collections Manager at the Indian Arts Research Center (IARC) from 1983-1985. While working at SAR, she wrote her Master’s Thesis about the repatriation of sacred materials, creating a set of guidelines for SAR as far back as 1985. She returned to SAR as a summer scholar in 1997, giving her the opportunity to interview her friend and colleague, Marjorie Lambert.

Marjorie Ferguson was born on June 13, 1908 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She became interested in archaeology at Colorado College where she heard Edgar Lee Hewett and Sylvanus Morley speak. Hewett paved the way for a fellowship that resulted in Marjorie directing field sites, notably Paako, teaching at the University of New Mexico, and becoming the first female archaeology curator at the Museum of New Mexico, a position she held for thirty-two years. She once estimated that she’d slept on the ground for about six years and at least once in the snow. Yet this did not diminish her enduring wit and sense of humor.

Shelby told the story of Marge and Jack’s first date in 1936 when he took her on a picnic lunch to Tsankawi and El Rito de los Frijoles (now called Bandelier).

Dr. Shelby Tisdale tells the story of  Jack and Marge Lambert’s first date. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

Rain began to burst onto the tent over our heads. Ken Stilwell remembers being amazed because “the rainstorm was coming down, but everyone was still really, really engaged.”

Cutting through the roar of rain, photographer and scholar David Grant Noble and his wife Ruth told stories about their experiences with Jack and Marge Lambert, providing insights into their character. David shared the unlikely and ultimately beautiful way Marjorie Lambert got to hold one of her archaeology heroes, Adolph Bandelier, in her arms.

To close out the evening, guests picked up their pre-ordered, signed copies of Dr. Shelby Tisdale’s book, toured the Marge Lambert Residence, and continued with refreshments and conversation in the Jack Lambert Residence.

David Grant Noble and Ruth Meria Noble remember Marge Lambert’s wit and sense of humor. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

Jack built the original, smaller hay storage house in 1929 for his horse wrangler, Eldon Butler. In what is the kitchen today, it’s possible to look up and see bullet holes in the vigas where Eldon used his six shooter to impress visiting girls.

Jack had just become Amelia Elizabeth and Martha White’s Estate Manager after twelve years as a horse and dude wrangler with Roy Pfäffle, the first owner of Ghost Ranch who won it in a gambling bet. They worked together at what today is Bishop’s Lodge and also started their own San Gabriel Ranch, which they ran together for about a decade.

In 1928, Jack and his wife Lois, Roy’s sister, managed a restaurant at Sena Plaza owned by the White Sisters. Around the same time, Jack assisted William Penhallow Henderson in building the adobe structures that are today’s SAR Scholar Residences, Administration Building, and the Seminar House that was Jack’s home for decades.

Jack didn’t live in the residence across the street at the corner of Garcia and Corrales until after he married Marjorie Lambert in 1950. For the first year, they lived in what is today the Compound Restaurant off Canyon Road. But Amelia Elizabeth wanted them closer to her, so she offered the old horse wrangler residence, which had been spruced up into a guest house by Jack Lambert at some point prior.

Marge Lambert was honored that SAR chose to remodel the old box stalls for the horses into a residence in her name after Marge and Jack sold both places to SAR in 1977.

Storytelling with Kat Bernhardt in the Marge Lambert Residence. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

Docent Johnnie Gillespie guides guests through the Marge Lambert Residence. Photograph by Garret Vreeland

For those interested in ordering Dr. Shelby Tisdale’s book No Place for a Lady: the Life Story of Archaeologist Marjorie F. Lambert, please select the title of the book to view the sales portal at the University of Arizona Press. We are thankful to the University of Arizona Press who provided a discounted rate for the books to those who purchased prior to or at the event.

Special thanks to Ken Stilwell, Larry and Barbara Good, Dorothy Bracey, John Murphey, Dr. Shelby Tisdale, David Grant Noble and Ruth Meria Noble, the University of Arizona Press, Walter Burke Catering, Total Wine & More, Roadrunner, Santa Fe Party Rentals, AJ Turner, Johnnie Gillespie, Miriam Kolar, Garret Vreeland, Moira Garcia, Erika Pompa, and all those who made a refreshing late afternoon/evening stroll through time and the legacy we share with Jack and Marge Lambert possible.

SOURCE for quotations from Marjorie Lambert:
Tisdale, Shelby J. No Place for a Lady: the Life Story of Archaeologist Marjorie F. Lambert. University of Arizona Press: 2023.