I came across this book while doing some casual research into my father’s line of ancestry. My father, Robert Rollins Smith, great-grandson of Elias William Smith, gave me this book to aid in my research. It was fascinating to me as I read about my ancestors: where they lived, what they listed in their wills, who they married, who their children were, etc. Most interesting to me was how I fit into this ever-growing Smith Family Tree.
This publication was originally distributed in 1973 to some of the descendants of Peter Smith, of Westmoreland County, Virginia. In April 1978, corrections were made and distributed to be inserted into the book. The information set forth for correction was furnished, in large part, by Mr. Louis H. Martin of Martinez, California, and Mr. Merritt L. Page of Green City, Missouri. These corrections have been accurately inserted into the book, and the necessary changes have been made to the index as well. I have also created Appendix H for the content edited due to the corrections.
I have endeavored to keep this volume in the same spirit it was written. I have made minor grammatical changes as well as changes to the format in an effort to make it more comprehensible to the reader.
I am indebted to my great-grandmother, Sarah Ellen (Gerrard) Smith for the pictures which I have inserted. They were found in a Book of Remembrance which she compiled for her husband, Jesse Baker Smith, son of Elias William Smith.
I have come to feel a great love and respect for my progenitors, whose lives fill these pages. May you come to know and love them as I have.
March 2005
