Washington A. Smith

As printed in 1906

WASHINGTON A. SMITH, who was a resident of Benton township and a notable figure here, possessing marked traits of character, was for a considerable period one of the successful fruit growers of the county. He read broadly, thought deeply and formed an individual opinion of all that he studied. He was a disciple of nature, enjoying its every phase and with great appreciation of its beauty. Having read the Bible extensively he was not sectarian but accepted the golden rule as a guide for life.

Mr. Smith was born in Bedford, Pennsylvania, February 8, 1824, his parents being Jacob and Elizabeth (Putnam) Smith, who were natives of Maryland. When their son was nine years of age they removed from Pennsylvania to Columbiana county, Ohio, and Mr. Smith acquired his education in Oberlin, Ohio. Taking up the study of law, he was admitted to the bar in the old Indian Council House at Upper Sandusky, Ohio, and entered upon active practice, remaining a member of the bar at Bryan, Ohio, for thirteen years. In the meantime he had heard so much of Michigan that he determined to live in this state and his health finally decided him to remove to this state in order to secure a change of climate and he purchased a farm, which at that time had but ten acres. He built his house a year before removing his wife to this county and located on Lake Michigan. It was the house which he occupied up to the time of his death but he added to it and improved it until it became one of the best farm residences in the county, commanding a fine view of Lake Michigan.

Mr. Smith was married on the ist of July, 1859, in Amberg, Michigan, to Miss Theresa Mary Holzer, who was born in Augsburg, Bavaria, on the 9th of March, 1842. They removed from Bryan, Williams county, Ohio, to Michigan, in 1862, and settled on a farm about three miles north of Benton Harbor. Here Mr. Smith engaged in business as a commercial grower of fruit and became well known as a leading horticulturist and a worker in various horticultural societies. On his arrival he set out each trees and other fruits. Fifty acres of his farm ordered the lake and his orchards were thus rendered free from frost. He delighted in his farm, finding great pleasure in its cultivation and improvement and became a close student of fruit and its possibilities in this portion of the country. He was one of the best educated men of Berrien county. He possessed keen intellectuality and an analytical mind, was well versed in law and became equally enthusiastic as a student of horticultural subjects. He delighted in nature in its various phases and his life after coming to Michigan was amid his flowers, his plants and his orchards. From the budding springtime until the late autumn he took the greatest delight in everything that grew and there was in his nature the kindly element and appreciation that are ever cultivated in those who live near to nature's heart.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Smith were born four children: Edwin A. who is now living in South Dakota; Mary, the wife of Frank Burdick, of Sodus township; Fanny B., at home; and Karl A., who married Lucy Elmer, of Vermont, and conducts the home farm.

In his political views Mr. Smith was a stalwart Republican until 1872, when he became a Democrat. He was an enthusiastic anti-slavery man prior to and during the period of the Civil war: He frequently attended the conventions of his party and was a candidate for the legislature at the time of Cleveland's election but suffered defeat. He was very active as a stump speaker up to that time and was strong and forceful in argument and logical in his deductions. He always held the attention of his hearers and many times brought conviction to their minds. He was active as a member of the Grange and the County Agricultural Society. He held membership with no church nor fraternity but was a close student of the Bible. In later life he announced the golden rule as his faith. He enjoyed an argument on religion or politics and was always able to present his side of the question with clearness and force. He liked, too, a game of chess, checkers, or cards but particularly the first mentioned, delighting in the skill which it called forth. His reading was largely historical, scientific and solid nature. He read the New York Tribune for many years, or until after Horace Greeley's campaign and death, and subsequently he became a subscriber to the Chicago Times. He gauged men according to what they read. He was himself a constant reader, his reading covering a wide range and he was particularly familiar with the plays of Shakespeare. His wife, too, had enjoyed good educational advantages in her girlhood days but was married in early life, being but seventeen at the time she gave her hand to Mr. Smith. For four years prior to his death Mr. Smith was an invalid but retained his mental faculties to the last, passing away February 10, 1903. He was buried in Crystal Springs, where a simple but handsome block of marble marks his last resting place. He never believed in show, his life being entirely free from ostentation and his many good qualities won him the respect and esteem of all with whom he was associated.

As printed in A twentieth century history of Berrien County, Michigan (1906). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.