BUSINESS
IN HOWARD COUNTY
Smith
Family Furniture Store
These
photos were submitted to me by Judy Malone. Judy is
trying to find more information on a Smith Family that owned
this furniture store in Big Springs ca 1900-1920.
James
William "Willie" Smith left McNairy County, Tennessee
around 1900 and came to Big Spring. The above photograph
is of the interior of a furniture store he owned in Big
Spring. He had two sons, Howard and Herbert.
Willie Smith's family are enumerated on the 1920 Federal
Census in Howard County, TX as follows:
Eva
Smith, HH, Widow, age 40; Employed at a dry goods store
Herbert
La?, son, age 14
Howard,
son, age 10
Judy says it has been passed down in her family that James
William "Willie" Smith was killed when he was
flirting with another man's wife and it supposedly happened
on a train. Willie Smith had sisters, Rebecca
b. c1868, Celia b. 1872 and Cornelia "Connie"
b. 1879 who might have gone to Texas with him or joined
him later on. On one photo of Rebecca, it shows
her with a baby, but baby's name is not given. (no dates
or place of location given either) The best we can make
out of her name is Mrs. Becca V---ston . It
looks like the last name starts with a V and the next few
letters are so faint, can't be read, and the name ends in
letters that looks like "ston".
The parents of this James William Smith were John Richard
Smith and Mary Francis Burks.
"Willie's
Grave"
If James William "Willie" Smith was killed (stabbed
is the family story) on a train, was his body buried there
in Big Spring or was it sent back home on a train to be
buried here in Tenn? Would a photo been
taken in Big Spring to send back home to the relatives that
couldn't make it out to TEX? Some of the men
look like some of our Smiths...but I truthfully can't identify
anyone. The two young boys are probably Willie's sons,
Herbert and Howard with their mother, Eva.
Howard
Smith
On back of photo is written: Howard Smith, Big Springs,
Texas No dates or other info. On front, as part
of the frame matting...there is oval with cameo of ladies
head and next to this is stamped Willis Art Gallery
This is the HALF PHOTO of Herbert Smith. This photo has
written on back...J.W. Smith (with that long
loop after Smith that would normally look like the beginning
of the word Jr., but we know Herbert isn't a Jr.
Also, it appears to be an apostrophe after the word Smith
as Smith', but that could be a random pencil mark.
Under the name J.W. Smith is written Willies Baby and under
this is written Herbert Smith (Smith is written
in faint letters, but it does look like Smith)
An
unidentified photo that could be of the Smith Family and
could have been made in the Howard County, Texas area.
If
you have any further information on the Smith family or
of the Furniture store, please contact Judy or me.
Judy Mainord Malone - Grandaughter of Norris Sidney Smith,
brother of James William "Willie" Smith.
Judy Malone
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