Smith History
This letter was written by Robert Graves Smith to his grand neice Jeanne
and Lawrence Poulsen.
Farmington, New Mexico
January 29, 1932
Edward Smith*, my Grandpa, was born near 1776 close to Sussex Courthouse,
Sussex County, Virginia, He was married twice and had by his first wife two
girls and by his second wife one boy and one girl. He was a man in good circumstances,
popular with his neighbors, had a still, and sometimes drank to much. His
first two daughters married twins and moved to Mobile, Alabama.
About the time Pa was sixteen, Grandpa, at a sale, while not to sober, bought
a mill. As Pa could not help himself, he had to take in and make
good. It had always been a drag, but Pa took and made it pay well.
About 1833 Pa took a notion to see his sisters at Mobile and his cousin ,
Batt Smith, so he straddled a horse and rode through outlaws and Indians
from Petersburg, Virginia, to Mobile, Alabama. He had not been long at his
half sisters' before they began to inquire about Grandpa's money matters,
so he took his hat and went to visit cousin Batt Smith, spent a few
days and started home; Cousin Batt Smith being so well-pleased with
his visit he gave him 600 dollars in gold to take back with him, but Aunt
Martha would not let him leave until he gave her half of it.
In 1838 he married Miss Dorothy Ann Graves (both pure English). To them were
born four boys; Edward, 1840; Waverley, 1842; Marion, 1844; Emmett, 1846.
Near this time he started with Uncle Tom _____ to move, landing in Memphis,
Tennessee. He settled 20 miles east of Memphis, lived there
four or five years, and then sister Lilla and I were born. While there he
took a contract with Peters Bros. for six mile of railroad and then he moved
to Tippah County, Mississippi, eight miles south of La Grange, Tennessee,
and six miles south of Grand Junction, Tennessee.
He hired a man name of Bob King to oversee the farm and work another contract
at Pocahontas, Mississippi, I think with Sam Fate and Bosly, and another
at Corinth, Mississippi. By this time he was making money, so in 1858 he
took a sixty mile contract alone and finished it in the first of 1860. This
contract was near ______, Miss.
Then the Civil War came on. He worked in the Quarter Master's Department
at Grand Junction till our troops evacuated the place. Then the Yanks came
down there and he remained at home. The soldiers would go out at night and
hold up the farmers for what cash they had. Ten of them came one night to
hold him up. He shot into them and killed two. They came back with a company
of a hundred men and burned him out. (Second Iowa Infantry). He called together
about ten men and a few of our slaves and shot the picket guards at night
and kept them scared good and plenty.
But before this burning, three or four months, the Yanks were hauling off
corn. We had about thirty-five men slaves and about thirty women and children.
We raised on an average of one hundred bales of cotton a year. The wagons
were being loaded and talk to PA and some of them seemed to like him.
Pa saw the wagons going by and asked the officer where he was going and he
said "To Captain Hardy's". Pa said to him: "If you go there you will
take all he has and he has a lot of girls and has a hard time to live", so
the officer ordered the wagons to our house to load corn.
The Yanks, after foraging on Pa for two or three times, start over to our
neighbor, Captain Hardy. One of the officers seemed to be attracted to Pa
and came by to visit him. Pa saw the wagons going
by and asked the officer where he was going and he said "To Captain Hardy's".
Pa said to him: "If you go there you will take all he has and he has
a lot of girls and has a hard time to live", so the officer ordered the wagons
to our house to load corn.
(Six or seven months after this that officer came back to La Grange and started
out to visit Pa. Uncle John Graves live about half-way to our place and he
told him Pa had been killed. The officer told Uncle John he had read of such
men and heard of such but had never seen such a man before and anxious to
meet Pa because such a man was was wonderful and a grand humanitarian.)
Our house was bured on the sixth of January and Pa was killed on May 1. As
I had no home but had a horse (I was only 14) I was sworn into the army with
the rest of the company and was a soldier from February to May.
Soon after this Brother Wave was made Lieutenant Colonel and Ed was made
Captain of our old Smith company. When General Forest went
into Memphis, Brother Ed had his horse killed under him. Wave was shot in
the shoulder at Richmond, Kentucky. That was his reason for being home at
this time.
*Edward Smith, Great, Great, Great Grandfather of Jeanne and Lawrence Poulsen
The above was copied from a letter written to me by my great Uncle, Robert
(Graves) Smith. My grandfather was Ed Smith born in 1840.
Lucille Smith Poulsen
(Note: The blank spaces are where names were illegible. Re-typed 1-28-80
by Terry Austin Lefler.)
Notes by Fred Cox:
This letter was written by Robert Graves Smith. Robert's parents were Robert
William and Dorothy Anne Graves Smith. Brother Ed was Richard Edward, Wave
was John Waverly, Marion was Marion Skipwith and Emmett apparently died young.
All except Emmett served in Co. D 18th Miss. Cavalry. John Waverly was once
Capt. of Co. D but later Lt. Col. of the regiment. Robert William was
Captain of Co. D.
