(from Beers)
William Frederick Smith (1818–1898) was born in Saxe-Gotha, Germany. He received a good German education. Not wishing to join the German army, he left for America at the age of 19, looking for freedom.
In the United States, he worked for a fish company in New York and then a piano factory in Baltimore. Not liking this work, he joined the American army as a cook in the mess department, where he spent three years.
In 1842, William Smith took up farming in Warwick Twp., on Lots 2 and 3 on the London Rd. He built a small log home, cleared the land and bought an additional 100 acres, as well as land in Enniskillen Twp. He brought the first threshing machine, a tread-power mill, to Warwick Twp. from Albany, New York. While working with this machine his hand was caught and severed. Even this accident did not stop him from working hard.
William Smith married Janet McAlpin, who was born in Scotland. They had eight children: Frederick, Andrew, Peter, William, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Robert, and Alice. Frederick stayed on the homestead. Robert (1861–), Elizabeth and Alice went to North Dakota for several years to homestead, then returned to Warwick Twp. to care for their aging mother. The other four children moved away from the area.
Chapter 24 of 25 - Smith, William Frederick
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