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Ancestors
of Miles Hochstein (Great Grandfather)
Jacob
K. Smith
(born Aug.
6, 1851 in Eldora Iowa,
died Sept. 8, 1934 in Mitchell, South Dakota)
"...but
as for the Real Estate business, it is bum..."
"...we cant at all times have things just as we want to have them..."
Froma letter to his son G. Day Smith, March 15 1921
Occupations:
Grocer, Real Estate Dealer
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Above:
Jacob Smith, fishing. Certainly post 1900, and probably in 1920s
or early 1930s.
My
mother (Gianna) reports that Jacob was a "real estate man",
and that he was wiped out by the depression. Based
on the sole surviving letter, the business wasn't doing very well
in 1921 either. Her memories of him are of a tired and broken old man whom she hardly knew at all.
On
the back of the photograph of Jacob Smith fishing (right top,
and below), my grandmother Bertha Smith wrote the following inscription.
"(Real
estate dealer and one of the early settlers of Mitchell). Your
grandfather, J.K.Smith. He was very fond of fishing. Your dad
went fishing with him occasionally when he visited him but didn't
care particularly for fishing."
My mother recalled for me (December 2001) the interesting fact that Jacob Smith was a douser. That is, he used a branch of some kind to detect the presence of underground water. Undoubtedly this would be a useful skill in the real estate business, if it worked.
Above:
Jacob K. Smith (possibly) in a more "middle aged" appearing
photo. This photo was misidentified (I believe) as Samuel Smith
by Bertha Smith, J.K. Smith's daughter-in-law.. This is why I
believe this to be the case: The photo was taken in Mitchell South
Dakota. On the back of the above photograph, my Grandmother Bertha
wrote: "Samuel Smith d. Eldora Ia I think this is your
great-grandfather." I have concluded that she was
mistaken. She probably never met Samuel Smith, and may have met
her husband's father Jacob K Smith only once at her wedding to
George Day Smith, if at all, so the statement is unlikely to be
based on a specific memory. Furthermore, there is no reason to
think that Samuel Smith, already 55 by 1871 would have accompanied
his son Jacob to South Dakota, even once, much less twice for
two photos at different ages. Furthermore the younger and older
photos are clearly of the same person, and closely resemble the
face in the photo at top which has been identified as Jacob Smith,
and which shows a man fishing, something that is consistent with
a specific known fact about Jacob Smith... that he loved to fish.
All told, I think it is clear that my grandmother was mistaken
and the above photo is Jacob Smith at midlife, not his father
Samuel Smith. I have another photo which is a candidate for being
an image of Samuel Smith,
but it too is probably his son Jacob K Smith.
Above:
Another photo, undated, of a middle aged Jacob K. Smith (possibly).
The photo is unlabeled and I identify it soley based on its
resemblance to the picture of the fishing man and the other
photos.
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Son
of Samuel Smith
and Mary Ann
(Bland) Smith of Eldora, Iowa.
Brother
of Hannah J Smith (aka Mrs. WW Brooks of Grundy County),
William H. Smith, Charles W. Smith, and Ellis M. Smith.
Husband
(married Oct. 9, 1876 Eldora, Iowa) of Emma Kate (Day) Smith
(b.
November 24, 1850 (or 1852?), Mesopotamia, Ohio, d. Nov.
26 1884, Mitchell, South Dakota) and
later husband (married, at Liscomb, Iowa Dec. 17, 1890) of Sadie Speicher (pictured below).
Father
of George Day Smith,
and one son, Vernon, who died in infancy.
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Above:
Jacob K. Smith (possibly) as a younger man, photo labeled on
back "Mitchell, South Dakota." Perhaps circa 1870
to 1875, around the age of 20 to 25, I would guess.
Below:
Sadie Speicher, the second wife of Jacob K. Smith, and the stepmother
of George Day Smith.
I
imagine that he would have set off for the Dakota Territories
around the age of 20, in the early 1870s, when there was a post-Civl
War land rush and later a gold rush. Public
land transaction records in Mitchell and/or South Dakota records
reveal a number of real estate transactions in Jacob's name.
Above:
Jacob K. Smith fishing
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Jacob K. Smith was born August 6, 1851 in Eldora Iowa. Of his early years we know little. His father was a pioneer farmer, his mother a farmer's wife, and we may presume led the working life of an Iowa farm boy of the period. Unlike his two older siblings who were probably born elsewhere in Iowa, he would have been born in Eldora.
With the approach of the Civil War in 1860 he would have seen his older brother join the Iowa cavalary and ride off to war by 1863, but as a 10 to 14 year old boy he would have been unable to participate. His older sister Hannah J. (Smith) Brooks (b. ca 1845), may have married in this period too, and would move off to another town as Mrs. WW Brooks of Grundy County.
Coming of age just after the Civil War, reaching the age of 16 1867, he perhaps assisted his father with the Eldora grocery business but like any young man he surveyed his world, and must have longed to strike out on his own life's adventure and perhaps to escape the small town of Eldora for the new frontier. How he would have occupied himself through the late 1860s and early 1870s we cannot say, but during this time the Dakota territories were being opened up, and he may be presumed to have felt their call.
Reaching the age of 25 in 1876 he married an Eldora girl, Emma Kate Day. They continued to reside in Iowa (presumably Eldora) until at least 1878 when their first child Vernon was born. Then, between 1878 and 1880, we may presume, carrying a young child, they headed out for South Dakota.
The
1880 Census
Jacob K. Smith first appears in South Dakota records in the 1880 Census. From
the 1880 census we learn that Jacob "R" (should be K) Smith
age 29 had already moved to the town of Mitchell, in Davison county, Dakota
Territory. There he was occupied as a Grocer, just like his father in Eldora
Iowa in the post Civil War era.
In
1880 he was recorded as married to Emma D. Smith, 28 years old, from Ohio,
who was Keeping House. Their first child Vernon Smith, born in Iowa, was two
years old. This fixes their arrival as no earlier than 1878, and no later than 1880.
Vernon would not live much beyond the age of two. My grandfather
G. Day Smith, their second child, had not yet been born.
Also
residing in their household in 1880 was a 42 year old male named Moses
Farrow, who was also a Grocer. We may guess that he was an employee
in Jacob K. Smith's operation, or perhaps a partner.
Jacob
was a little unclear on where his parents had been born, listing his
father as being from Indiana. In reality, his father Samuel
Smith was born in Ohio, and migrated via Pennsylvania and Indiana
to Iowa. Jacob K. Smith also erroneously listed his (West) Virginia
born mother Mary Ann (Bland)
Smith as being from Pennsylvania.
Mitchell South Dakota in 1880
What kind of place had Jacob K. Smith brought his wife of four years and their two year old son to? My sense of it was that it was a boom town, and that his arrival there between 1878 and 1880 must have conincided with its earliest moments.
As seen further below, he called himself "the oldest Real Estate Dealer in Davison County" and this was a claim to pride of place and pride in being an early settler.
The following general history gives a flavor for his early world. He was presumably in the thick of the land rush that must have accompanied the activities described below in the late 1870s and early 1880s.
City of Mitchell
Andreas' "Historical Atlas of Dakota", 1884
The commencement of Mitchell dates from May 5,
1879, when a half-section of Government land was located
by Gen. John D. Lawler, with soldiers' additional scrip
on the surveyed line of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St.
Paul Railway, in Davison Co. The original town was laid
out in September following, and in October lots were
offered for sale upon contract, the purchasing parties
agreeing to pay one-fourth the purchase money down, and
guaranteeing the improvement of the lot and taking a bond
for a deed; the remainder to be paid upon the completion
of the railway to town.
These last payments became due on the 1st of May 1880.
The buildings erected previous to the advent of the railway
were either removed from the old trading-post, Firesteel, or
constructed from material hauled in wagons from Marion
Junction, 50 miles away.
During the winter of 1879, which was mild and
comparatively free from storms and deep snows, building
continued active, considering the difficulties to be
overcome. From the day when it became apparent that Mitchell
would become a prominent place on a great line of railway,
it became at once the objective point for land seekers, and
this fact was duly recognized by the General Government
when, in October 1880 a United States land office was
established here. The district includes the counties of
Davison, Moody, Miner, Lake, Aurora, Buffalo, Brule,
Hanson, McCook & Minnehaha.
The following table shows the number of acres taken
at the Mitchell Land Office between January 3 and
November 29, 1882:
Number of Homesteads taken.....................6,155
Number of acres taken as homesteads...........984,800
Number of Homestead final proofs..................331
Number of acres covered by Homestead proofs.....52,960
Number of Pre-emptions taken.....................4,042
Number of acres pre-empted.....................646,620
Number of Timber Culture entried....... .........3,315
Number of acres covered by Timber Culture entries..530,400
Number of Timber Culture final proofs...............15
Number of Soldiers; Declaratives..................2,335
Number of Military Bounty Land Warrents located .....14
Number of cash entries.............................2,550
Number of acres entered by cash...................408,000
Following are a few interesting items relating to the
early days of Mitchell, which have been gathered from various
sources:
On the 16th of September, 1879, John Walsh moved a 12 by 16
frame building from Firesteel to Mitchell, and placed it
on the lot south of where the First National Bank building
now stands. It was occupied during the winter of 1879-80
as a post-office, and also accommodated the "Capital," the
first paper published in the place. On the 21st of the same
month, M. F. Dunham moved the second building from Firesteel,
and set it on the southeast corner of Second and Lawler
streets, where it was occupied as a dwelling. In the same
month Messrs. Wells and Oswald and Mr. S. F. Goodykoontz
commenced bringing lumber by team from Marion Junction,
and in October began building, the former on lot 9, in block
13, of the original town, and the latter on lots 10 and 11,
in the same block. About the same date O. R. Betts erected a
small frame building on lot 12, block 8, in which he opened
a hardware store, and probably sold the first goods in
Mitchell. M. F. Dunham also hauled a building over for
W. Abbey, and located it on lot 7 block 18, where it was
occupied as a boarding house by A. P. Pilger. About the
same time J. Davy put up a building on lot 19, block 19,
which was used for a saloon, and known as the "Chalkstone Saloon."
In October, John Lowell moved his building over from Firesteel,
and placed it where the Gleason House afterward stood, and of
which it bacame a part. In the same month W.Wells erected a
hotel where the Sanborn House now stands, and named it the
Wells House.
The growth of the city since 1880 has been like that of many
other towns in Dakota, rapid and phenomenal. In March of the
last mentioned year, a single square of frontage would
include all the business building of the place.
The year 1882 witnessed a wonderful boom in the growth and
improvement of the town. Among the fine business structures
erected were the bank of Ormsby, Clute & Co., the First
National bank block, the Letcher block and the bank of
Mitchell. During the year the aggregate value of building
improvements reached the respectable sum of $500,000.
The year 1883 witnessed a still greater expansion and outlay.
During the season twentyfive business blocks and 200
residences were built, and the aggregate outlay reached
an immence sum. The mercantile business of the city for
1883 amounted to more than $1,000.000.
The prosperity of Mitchell is owing largely to railway influences,
it being the crossing point of the two lines of the Chicago,
Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway, giving it a central location
and making it a fine marketing point for a large region of
productive country. The location of a district land office
has also conduced largely to its growth and business, and
its situation in the heart of the James River Valley contitutes
another important factor in its circle of advantages as a
business point. The cosmopolitan character of its people,
coming as they do from all parts of the American Union, is
still another reason for its energetic continued advance in
wealth and population.
Valuable building materials abound in the vicinity, including
the white chalk-stone of the Missouri Valley, a reddish
variety of sand-stone, and the famous Sioux Falls quartzite.
Copyrighted 2002 for Davison county South Dakota by: Davison County Genealogical Society.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~sddaviso/ |
The following shows that in 1880 he resided in house unit 46. A clue for future use? The 1880 census page number is "6" Moses Farrow resides with him, as I've seen elsewhere. But his wife, Emma Kate (Day) Smith whom he married in 1876, is not listed in this online version of the 1880 census. His occupation is "grocer" according to the census at this early stage in his residence in Mitchell.
1880 Census
Smith Jacob K 6 Mitchell 46
Farrow Moses 6 Mitchell 46
http://www.rootsweb.com/~sddaviso/dcensus1880.htm |
Four years later in 1884 we find Jacob K. Smith has assumed the position of Register of Deeds. He would appear to be the second Register of Deeds in Mitchell. We may note the parallel between his own position and his father's assumption of the position of Recorder for Eldora back in 1850. It is easy to imagine his father Samuel Smith recommending to him the many political and business advantages that come from holding that position, and so "like father, like son", we see a "tradition" of small town public office holding emerge. His brother Ellis M. Smith would take political involvement much further, becoming eventually a state senator.
Description & History, Davison County,SD
A. T. Andreas' "Historical Atlas of Dakota", 1884
Davison County is situated in the James River valley,
centrally between the Missouri River and the valley of the Big
Sioux, in the midst of the finest portion of southern Dakota.
It is bounded by Sanborn County on the north, by the first
standard parallel which seperated it from the counties of
Hutchinson and Douglas on the south, by Hanson County on the
east, and Aurora County on the west. It comprises twelve
congressional towns, equal to 432 square miles of 276, 480 acres.
The James River traverses two of the towns in the
northeast corner of the county, near the line of Hanson County,
through a fine valley having an average width of a half mile or
more. The other principal streams are Firesteel Creek and Morris
Creek in the north, and Enemy and Twelve Mile creeks in the south
part of the county.
The county was erected in the session of 1873-74. The
commissioners appointed by the Governor were
J. Head, L. Hain and J. Platt. There appears to be no
records of the proceedings of these officers, but they
met at the house of H. C. Green who was appointed Register
of Deeds, and Firesteel was made the first county seat.
The first general election for county officers took place in
November, 1874, at Green's house, at which time the following
officers were elected: Commissioners, John Head, L. W. Lowell,
R. P. Cady; Register of Deeds,Thomas Watson. Watson did not
qualify, and R. L. Alterton was appointed in his stead. Sheriff,
C. Morris, elected, but failing to qualify, L. Hain was
appointed. Treasurer, Rev. J. Morris; Judge of Probate, Rev J.
Morris; Superintendent of Schools, Rev. J. Morris; Assessor, L.
Hain.
The county seat was changed to Mitchell in 1880.
The following are the present 1884 county officers: Register
of Deeds, J. K. Smith; Clerk of Court, William C.
Metcalf; County Judge, W. L. Warren; Sheriff, R. L. Alterton;
Coroner, A. S. Curtis; Treasurer, R.D. Prescott;
Superintendent of Schools, William H. Helwig; Surveyor, Major
I Green; Assessor, C. B. Rathburn.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~sddaviso/davhis.htm
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In 1890 (Dec. 17), some 6 years after the death of his first wife Jacob K. Smith remarried to Sadie Speicher at Liscomb, Iowa. His son George Day Smith (my grandfather) was already being raised in Eldora, Iowa and would be about 8 years old. After their Iowa wedding, presumably Jacob K. Smith and his new wife returned to Mitchell, South Dakota, where they resided for the remaining four decades of his life.
In 1899, some 9 years later, a JK Smith is listed as "city auditor." Whatever else he may have done in the real estate business he remained, it would appear, closely associated for the first two decades of his residence in Mitchell with the recording of deeds.
CITY DIRECTORY 1899, MITCHELL, DAVISON CO SD
Smith J K city auditor 211 W 4th
http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Esddaviso/mitdir1899hy.htm |
Ten years later, in the 1909 listing in the Mitchell Business Directory, JK Smith is first listed as being in the Real Estate business.
Mitchell Business Directory
Smith J.K Real estate
ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/sd/davison/business/mitchell-1909.txt |
A clue to the financial straits of Jacob K. Smith in later life (aluded to in his 1921 letter to his son G. Day Smith) may be found in the fact that there are aproximately 19 individuals who list themselves as being in the "real estate" business in 1909 Mitchell, whose population was perhaps 8000 persons.
CITY DIRECTORY 1911-1912, MITCHELL, DAVISON CO SD
Smith Jacob K Sadie E r214 Main
http://www.rootsweb.com/~sddaviso/mitdir1911lz.htm
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In the above 1912 document we find the address of Jacob K. Smith and Sadie E Smith on Main street.
Sadie's business, which 10 years later, in 1921, according to Jacob's letter to his son George Day Smith was "keeping up remarkably well" and may have already been in operation at this time at this location.
The listing above might suggest that they shared an office on Main street. (Is r214 a street address or a room number or a page listing?)
Five years later, by 1917 (below) we see that Jacob and his wife have separate business addresses on Main Street, and we see that Mrs. J.K. Smith (Sadie) seems to have two employees. Two residents of Mitchell list the "Art Needle Work Store" or Mrs. JK Smith as their place of employment or employer.
Entries from the 1917
Mitchell Merchants Association Directory
Last First Spouse Place of Business / Employment
Smith J K , Mrs Art Needle Work Store, 307 1/2 Main
Smith Jacob K Sadie E real est, 205 N Main
Other persons associated with the Art Needle Work Store or Mrs. J.K. Smith
Judge, George W, Mrs art needle work store
Nelson, Anna ; needle work Mrs J K Smith
Mitchell Directory 1917, issued under the supervision of the
Mitchell Merchants Association, listing residents of Mitchell,
SD over the age of 18 years, using census data. The actual
count shows 8,134 persons, however taking into account the
houses where it was impossible to secure information it can
safely be said that Mitchell has at least 8,200 population.
This Directory also includes a plat map of Mitchell in the year
1917. Property of the Davison County Historical Society and
posted with their permission. The Mitchell Directory 1917 can
be found in the: Mitchell, SD Public Library, Archives Room.
URL: http://www.rootsweb.com/~sddaviso/mitdir1917lz.htm
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From the 1923 Mitchell directory we learn that Mr. and Mrs. JK Smith reside at h19 Beckwith duplex.
1923 Mitchell Directory
L Name F/M Name Spouse Occupation/ Misc Address
Smith, Jacob K Sadie E real est h19 Beckwith duplex
http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Esddaviso/mds.htm
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I have a mysterious picture of a shop in G. Day's effects. The only explanation of this picture that I can think of is that it might be a picture of the interior of Sadie E. Smith's Art Needle Work Store in Mitchell, South Dakota. Either that, or else it is a random shop from somewhere else.
Speaking with my mother on Aug 1, 2005, she recalls that J.K. Smith's second wife, Sadie, was a seamstress of some kind, consistent with this information.
In 1921, Jacob K. Smith, now 70 years of age, becomes a grandfather, as G. Day Smith and Bertha Smith become parents to Marrium ("Swish") Smith, their first daughter.
Jacob, in the maner of the time, urges his son, my grandfather G. Day Smith not to be disappointed that the child is not a boy, but to "try again." They do, resulting in the birth of my mother, the second of their two children. Below is the letter from 1921, the only document we have composed by Jacob K. Smith.
Below: The only surviving letter from Jacob Smith, written to his son G. Day on the occasion of the birth of Jacob's first grandchild, Marrium (AKA Swish), my aunt. It was an era in which a man knew that his son wanted a son, not a daughter, and felt not the slightest shame in expressing it.
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BUYS AND SELLS REAL ESTATE BANK REFERENCES
J .K. SMITH
OLDEST REAL ESTATE DEALER
____________________________
IN DAVISON COUNTY
MITCHELL, SO. DAK.
March 15th 1921
Geo. Day Smith, Esq;-
Kansas City, Mo.
Dear Day,
It was some days ago that we received a telegram informing us of the birth of a girl at your home, and that a letter would follow giveing full particulars, this letter has never been received but we are led to believe that every thing is O.K. and your time taken up in walking the floor and josling the coloch out of the new member of the family and renewing your strength from the ordeal that both you and Bertha have just passed through;
Sadie, is much pleased at the thought that it is a girl while I was offering up a prayer daily that it might be a boy that the name of Smith might be perpetuated until the end of time, but we cant at all times have things just as we want to have them, so take a fathers advice and don't get discouraged but try again;
Sadie, tells me she is perpareing something to send the kid (and I presume she will be doing this frequently) and no doubt she will become interested enough to ask the privilage of the nameing of the child when it becomes old enough to name;
Of course, you have been apprised of the fact of Georges death, and I dont know just what Jessies plans may be for the future, but Sadie called to see her and Aunt Hellen one evening last week, and Jessie was at that time bearing up well under her great loss;
Sadies, business is keeping up remarkably well, but as for the Real Estate business, it is bum and I am takeing to the Onion patch, as a side line for recreation and some hope of proffit at the same time;
Trusting we may here from you in a few days, we remain as ever.
Dad and Sadie |
In the above letter the spelling has been left uncorrected.
~
The photo below from Roots Web (click here) where many similar pictures are shown is the Main Street of Mitchell South Dakota in what appears to be a photo from the 1920s, toward the end of Jacob K. Smith's life. We may surmise that the life of the town had passed him by by this time, and he had "taken to the onion patch" although his wife's business, the Art Needle Work Store, was going strong on this very street at 205 Main Street.
The photo below depicts main street in Mitchell SD, date unknown.
Below: Jacob Smith in what must have been his own personal heaven, reclining by a river fishing.
The following entry for Emma Day in the Andrews Genealogy gives the date of Jacob's remarriage to Sadie Speicher as 1890, some six years after the death of Emma Day Smith
The following contains numerous errors about Emma Day. See her page for correct information..
In the Adele Andrews Genealogy (1940), the following information on Jakob K. Smith is offered:
"Jacob K. Smith, son of Samuel and Mary Todd [Todd is an error] Smith of Eldora. He was born Aug. 6, 1851 in Eldora, died Sept. 8, 1934 in Mitchell, where he is buried He married (2nd marriage) at Liscomb, Ia Dec. 17, 1890 Sadie Speicher who died Nov. 29, 1938 Marshalltown, Ia, where she is buried."
Adele Andrews (1940) Genealogy
Emma Kate DayBorn Nov. 24, 1842, Mesopotamia, Ohio (or 1850
)Died Nov. 26, 1884 Mitchell, S. Dak. buried Mitchell.Married Oct. 9, 1876 Eldora , Ia, Jacob K. Smith, son of Samuel Smith and Mary Todd (THIS IS AN ERROR, HER NAME WAS Mary Ann Bland) Smith of Eldora. He was born Aug. 6, 1851 in Eldora, died Sept. 8, 1934 in Mitchell, where he is buried. He married (2) at Liscomb, Ia Dec. 17, 1890 Sadie Speicher who died Nov. 29, 1938 Marshalltown, Ia, where she is buried.The children of Jacob and Emma Day Smith were two:Vernon, born about 1879, Mitchell. died about 1880 George Day, Born May 9, 1882 Mitchell
Data furnished by G.D. Smith
U.S. Census 1860 Trumbull Co., Ohio. |
Back
revised
Feb. 2007
Notes:
4
TEXT Extract: 1880 United States Census
5 CONT Census Place: Mitchell, Davison, Dakota Territory
5 CONT Source: FHL Film 1254112; National Archives Film T9-0112; Page
470B
5 CONT Household:
5 CONT Rel Sex Marr Race Age Birthplace
5 CONT Jacob R. SMITH (that's an error, should be "K", MH)
5 CONT Self Male M W 29 IA
5 CONT Occ: Grocer Fa: IN Mo: PA
5 CONT Emma D. SMITH
5 CONT Wife Female M W 28 OH
5 CONT Occ: Keep House Fa: VT Mo: VT
5 CONT Vernon SMITH
5 CONT Son Male S W 2 IA
5 CONT Fa: IA Mo: OH
5 CONT Moses FARROW
5 CONT Other Male M W 42 VT
5 CONT Occ: Grocer Fa: MA Mo: VT
0 @S01@ SOUR
JACOB
SMITH
purchase records in mitchell, 1901 atlas:
http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ifetch2?/u1/data/sd+index+568365319822+F
Smith Jacob 23 103 60 Mitchell 25 and Smith Jacob 23 103 60 Mitchell
27
http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ifetch2?/u1/data/sd+index+566864851406+F
Jacob
K Smith is listed in 1909 in the real estate business, Mitchell, Davison
Co., SD - 1909 Business Directory
ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/sd/biography/kingsbury/v5/smith-e.txt
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