West Virginia Smith Family – July 1927, Belle’s 63rd Birthday
Definition:
History
While the surname Smith probably originated in the United Kingdom (the earliest recorded instance of Smith was in 975 in England), the history of the surname spans many cultures and many times. Most probably, the surname was originally related to someone who was a blacksmith, a goldsmith, or any type of person who worked with metals and would have been taken by those who practiced the profession and subsequently their family.
However, as time went on, the surname was also taken due to life circumstances. For instance, many Native Americans took the name (which was common even in colonial times) in order to make dealings with the colonists easier. Also, freed slaves would take the name Smith because that was the name of the slaveholder. In other cases, because of the frequency of the surname, Smith was often taken as an alias. Especially during World War 1 and World War 2, in the United States, the German name Schmidt or Schmitt would be changed to “Smith” – “Americanizing” it in order to hide German heritage. The history of the Smith family (and related names) is one of the most complex and widely misunderstood family histories.
The surname Smith is a common surname in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and other English-speaking countries. However, having the surname Smith does not necessarily mean that a particular family named Smith is of Anglo-Saxon roots. There are many variations of “Smith” such as “Smyth” and “Smythe” in English but the surname, when originally related to a profession in other lands, may also be Schmidt or Schmieder or many other spellings. Because of the wide variety of reasons for the taking of the surname Smith (and the changing to “Smith” from the original language), not all families named Smith are related.
Name Origin
Originally, the name Smith was an Anglo-Saxon (Old English) term meaning “one who works in metal.” However, some think that the surname “Smith” may also have been related to the word “smite”. The Old English form of smite, which also meant strike (as in early 17th century Biblical English: the verb “to smite” = to hit).” which was linked with being a warrior.
Spellings & Pronunciations
In English, variations of Smith may be Smyth, Smythe,Smijth Smithman, Smithson and Smithfield
In German, Schmid, Schmidt, Schmitt, Schmitz, and Schmied
In Yiddissh: SchmiederIn southern Dutch: De Smid, De Smedt, Desmedt, De Smet, Smeets, and Smets, and in northern Dutch and Afrikaans: Smit, Smid, Smidt, Smed, De Smet
These are just a few of the variations of the “Smith” surname.
Our Smith ancestors and their many relatives, settled in Virginia and Kentucky as early as the beginning of the 1700’s.
From places in Virginia like “Chesterfield County”, “Tug River”, “Frederick”, “Jamestown”, “Richmond”, “Harrisonburg”, “Wheeler South Ford” and “12 Pole Creek”
In Kentucky it was “Blaine”, “Iron Hill”, “Carter”, “Covington”, “Morehead”, “Johnson” and “George Creek”
The Smiths are believed to be descendants of George ‘Burntface’ Smith, born on January 1, 1688, in England. He is said to have been a “Scottish Coaler” and to have come to America to serve as an indentured servant for William Byrd II. George immigrated to Virginia on June 15, 1709, aboard the ship ‘Providence.’ He is our 5th-great-grandfather.
Byrd was one of America’s wealthiest men at the time. He had discovered coal near the Huguenot settlement of Manakin. This French “refugee” community had been using it for their cooking but not mining it as a commodity for resale. He created the first commercial coal mine in the Americas. Bryd was also a prolific writer of diaries that would later be published in several books.
William Byrd II
Below are a few of Byrd’s entries about him.
-
-
-
- June 15, 1709 — “While at dinner Captain M-r-n came with some more letters. He brought me a coaler recommended me by Colonel Blakiston.”
- July 18, 1709 — “…. that the coaler found the coal mine very good and sufficient to furnish several generations”
- Aug 18, 1709 — “From hence Isham Randolph and I proceeded to Falling Creek, where I found all well and had the pleasure to hear that my coaler had recovered …. “
- Dec 23, 1710 — “George the coaler came likewise from the coal-pit and told me all was well there.”
- June 29, 1711 — “George Smith came from Manakin Town and told me all was well at the coal-pit and Falling Creek.”
- June 30, 1711 — “I rose at 5 o’clock and settled accounts with George Smith …. “
-
-
-
- “About 8 o’clock came Mr G-r-l and George Smith by whom I learned all was well at Falling Creek and the coal-pit.”
-
-
-
-
-
As you can see, George was his “coaler” in charge of his coal pit” and the assumed reason for his nickname ‘Burntface’ must have meant a few too many close calls with coal fires. Other writings indicated that George was often absent and that Byrd was unhappy with his coaler. George was listed as a tithable for the Huguenot’s King William Parish as early as 1714, five years after he arrived in Virginia, which may indicate his service period ended early.
In Parish documentation, George gave one tithe consisting of two bushels of wheat in 1720. He is listed in 1717, 1723, 1725, 1726, 1729 and 1730, along with his sons Thomas, James and George.
George was granted 367 1/2 acres of land on a branch of Jones Creek called Chastain’s Branch for 40 shillings on September 5, 1723. By the time he died in 1740, he had accumulated significant land and wealth. He married Anne Bailey in 1716 in Goochland County, Virginia.
When James Washington Smith (see below) died in the Civil War, his widow, Jane R. (GARRETT) remarried and two of her daughters married two of the sons of her new husband. That was one hell of a negotiation.
The progenitor of my "direct" Smith family line was James Smith, of Chesterfield County, Virginia. James was both on February 15, 1774, in Manchester. He married Margaret (UNKNOWN). They had 7 children including James Washington Smith, my direct ancestor. They also had a set of twins, Bailey Hilton and Nancy.
The progenitor of the Smith family line that married into the Bloss and Garrett line was Richard Smith. He was born in 1627 in England and settled in Northumberland County, Virginia in about 1657. He had a son named William who had a son named Isaac who had a son named Isaac Jr. born in 1745 in Culpeper, Augusta County Virginia. Isaac Jr. served in the Revolutionary war and served under the command of Col. Zackquill Morgan in the Virginia Minutemen/Militia, a regiment raised in Monongalia Virginia. He later served under General Lafayette at the Battle of Yorktown.