Nathan R. Smith, one of the successful farmers and stock
raisers of Dorchester township, Macoupin County, the owner of a fine farm of
153 acres in section 25 and 26, is also one of the prominent and influential
men of his township. He was born December 5, 1838, near Carrollton, Greene
County, Illinois, and is a son of Thomas and Mary (Chatham) Smith.
This branch of the great Smith family is of Welsh extraction. The
great-grandfather of our subject served in the Revolutionary War and his
grandfather, Nathan Smith, served in the War of 1812. The latter had five
children: Thomas, Joseph, Mrs. Elizabeth Weeks; Mrs. Miranda Newberry and
Mrs. Lucy Woodruff, all of whom became residents of Illinois.
Thomas
Smith, father of Nathan R. Smith, was born August 9, 1813, in North
Carolina, near Raleigh, where he resided until 1834, when he removed to
Greene County, Illinois. There he married and later removed to Madison
County and still later to Macoupin County, dying on his farm south of
Staunton in 1852. In politics he was a Whig. Both he and his wife were
members of the Methodist Church. The latter, who was a native of Virginia,
accompanied her parents first to Kentucky and later to Illinois. She became
the devoted and beloved mother of six children: Nathan R., of this sketch,
who is the oldest; Mrs. Frances Snell, of Staunton; Jasper, who lives with
our subject; Mrs. Ellen Sparks, who lives near Edwardsville, Illinois;
Joseph, superintendent of a coal mine at Staunton; and Mrs. Margaret Grant,
of Edwardsville.
Nathan R. Smith was an infant when his parents
moved from Greene to Madison County and was four years old when they came to
Macoupin County, which has been his home ever since, with the exception of
three years spent in Madison County. He has always followed a farming life
and his fine farm of 153 acres testifies to his ability. He located on it in
1866 and has made stock raising a feature, giving attention only to the best
grades of cattle and hogs. His improvements are substantial and a lately
erected fine dwelling and commodious barn add much to the air of comfort and
the prosperity of the place. He has a fine orchard of 50 trees, set out by
himself, which are in good bearing at the present time.
In 1858 Mr.
Smith married Servilla Walker, who was born in Dorchester township, Macoupin
County, Illinois, June 29, 1840, a daughter of Aaron and Nancy Walker,
natives of Indiana and Illinois, respectively, who were pioneers in this
section. Mr. and Mrs. Smith had three children born to them, viz: Charles, a
resident of Mitchell, Illinois, who has four children, — Charles, Donna,
Maggie and an infant; Thomas, also a resident of Mitchell, who has three
children; and James, who is also a resident of Mitchell. Mrs. Smith died in
1874 and in the following year Mr. Smith married Hannah Cornelius, who was
born in Dorchester township, Macoupin County, Illinois, and they had three
children: Nathan, of Mitchell; Mrs. Dolly Sawyer, of Staunton, and
Cornelius, who lives at home. The mother of this family, born February 14,
1853, died April 21, 1897. In 1900 Mr. Smith married Mrs. Julia Simmons,
daughter of Jacob Perrine.
For the past 30 years Mr. Smith has been
a school official, for 16 years was highway commissioner, has been four
times elected township clerk and has been supervisor for seven years. In all
his public offices he has been honest, careful and economical in the
interests of the township. Fraternally he is a Master Mason in Lodge No. 177
and a Modern Woodman of America in Lodge No. 572, both of Staunton.
Extracted 2018 May 08 by Norma Hass from Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens of Macoupin County, Illinois, published in 1904, pages 281-282.
Macoupin County ILGenWeb Copyright
Design by
Templates in Time
This page was last updated
07/01/2022