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Josiah Smith and Eliza Fox
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Chariton, Lucas County, Iowa |
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 The McCurdy Farm The Grandchildren Irene Vera White Rickard 1909 Hazel Izetta Smith Hamilton 1910 Dorothy Arline Kimsey Smith 1911 Joseph Elmer Smith 1914 Bonnie E. Smith 1914 Ralph Smith 1916 James Smith 1917 Robert Gills Smith 1917 Mina Lee Kimsey Keef 1918 Virginia Maxine Smith Miller 1919 Beulah B. Smith 1919 Donald Dee Kimsey 1920 Harold Smith 1920 Norman Bertrand Smith 1921 Mildred Smith 1921 Lee Roy Smith 1923 Robert Jack Smith 1923 Mae Smith 1924 Doris Dean Taylor Montegna 1924 Maryon Kathleen White 1924 Donald William White 1925 William Bryan Smith 1925 Azalea Smith 1926 Twyla Mae Larson King 1926 Harry W. Smith 1928 Marjorie Ann Taylor 1931 Joan Grace Smith Irwin 1931 James Luther Taylor 1933 Ruth Louise Taylor McPhillips1937 Robert Smith before 1937 William Martin Smith 1938 James Smith 1940 Kathryn Smith D'Angelo abt. 1942 Marjorie Ann White 1943
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Josiah Allen Smith and Eliza Fox were married May 6, 1886 in Chariton, Lucas County Iowa. According to their son, Bryan Smith, “Eliza kept her and Josiah’s wedding certificate above the headboard of their bed." Soon after Josiah and Eliza were married, they homesteaded in Sunnyside, Lincoln County, Kansas. They lived in a sod dugout there from 1887 to 1889. Their first two children were born in Kansas. Mary Grace Smith White Hanley was born February 19,1887. John Elmer Smith were born on January 27, 1889. There were “too many snakes and not enough water" so they returned to Iowa and settled in Chariton in 1890. When they first moved back to Iowa, the family lived on the McCurdy Farm fourteen miles south of Chariton. During this time Josiah worked on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in Mission, South Dakota. From 1884 to 1885 they rented the Braden Farm. Bertha Edna Smith Kimsey was born October 21, 1890. Harry William Smith was born March 6, 1892. Ethel Edith Smith Taylor was born August 20, 1894. They were members of the Mt. Carmel United Evangelical Church in Benton Township and the children attended Sunday School there. The family moved to Chariton in 1896. Augusta Lena Smith Larson was born June 8, 1898. In 1900 the List of Heads of Families and Children taken September 13, 1900 at Benton Center No. 4 (Myers School) included Grace age thirteen, Elmer age eleven, Bertha, age nine, Harry age eight, and Ethel age six. The 1901 list added Bryan age five. The family also appeared in the 1900 census in Benton Township. The household consisted of Josiah age 40 who was a farmer, Eliza J. age 35, Mary G. age 13, Elmer J. age 11, Bertha age 9, Harry age 7, Ethel age 5, Bryan age 3 and Gusty age 1. Andrew Jack Smith was born June 20, 1901. Twyla Mae Smith White was born December 31, 1904. The story of the quilt of three feathers told by Bryan Smith came from this period, Elmer, Harry and Bryan
In 1907 Josiah and Eliza moved to Red Oak, Montgomery County, Iowa and lived at 203 South Second Street at the edge of “Russian Town." They moved to Fuller farm for about a year. It was owned by the Hayes family. After that, they moved to a dairy farm. Josiah did carpentry work on these farms and Eliza worked in restaurants.  Back Row- Gus, Bryan, Grace, Elmer, Bertha and Harry Front Row: Twyla, Eliza, Josiah, Ethel, Jack Taken about 1908 About this time the older children had begun to marry and set up their own households. Mary Grace married in 1907 and her daughter Vera was born in 1909. Bertha married in 1908 and her daughter, Dorothy was born in 1911. John Elmer married in 1909 and his oldest, Hazel was born in 1910 and Joseph was born in 1914. Harry married about 1913 and his oldest Bonnie was born in 1914. At the time of the 1910 census the family was Red Oak. The household at that time consisted of Josiah, Eliza, Ethel, Bryan, Gusta, Andy and Twyla. Grace was in Jordan, South Dakota, Elmer was in Montgomery County, Iowa, and Bertha was in Rock Springs, Wyoming. After Red, Oak, Josiah bought 220 acres of wild land in Minnesota where he cut timber. Harry and his wife, Bess, were already in Wright. Their children Ralph, James, Harold, Beulah, Mildred and Mae were born there. His granddaughter Maryon, White, wrote, that Josiah
While they were living in Wright, Josiah told Bryan, who was about fourteen or fifteen, it was time to move out. Maryon said
He made it to Red Oak where Ethel was working in a bank and worked for a farmer. Eliza left Minnesota and Josiah and she divorced. Eliza moved first to Red Oak, Iowa, Montgomery County, with the five youngest children and then to Sioux City where Grace lived. The five youngest children, Bryan, Ethel, Augusta, Jack, and Twyla lived by themselves in Red Oak. When World War I started, Jack lied about his age and joined up and Bryan soon followed. Augusta went to Des Moines to live with Eliza and Twyla was sent to Wyoming to live with Bertha.
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 Grace and Twyla |
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 Grace & Bertha |
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 Gus, Jack, Twyla, Bryan, and Ethel about 1919. |
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Go to Part 2 |
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Click here to read family memoires in the Wind in the Willow |
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©Roberta Tuller 2023
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