Willie Smith

Brief Life History of Willie

When Willie Smith was born in 1847, in Bristol, England, United Kingdom, his father, John Smith, was 32 and his mother, Amelia Sutton Willie, was 35. He married Elizabeth Willett Pring on 16 September 1874, in Kingsdown St Matthew, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom. They were the parents of at least 1 son and 1 daughter. He lived in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, England, United Kingdom in 1891 and Bristol, Gloucestershire, England in 1901. He died about 1923, in Bristol, England, United Kingdom, at the age of 77.

Photos and Memories (1)

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Family Time Line

Willie Smith
1847–about 1923
Elizabeth Willett Pring
1846–1933
Marriage: 16 September 1874
Ethel Agnes Sutton Smith
1875–1956
Douglas Willie Smith
1881–1935

Sources (17)

  • Willie Smith in household of John Smith, "England and Wales Census, 1861"
  • William Smith, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
  • Willie Smith in entry for Douglas Willie Smith, "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices"

World Events (6)

1854 · The Crimean War

The Crimean War was fought between Russia and an alliance of Britain, France, Sardinia and Turkey on the Crimean Peninsula. Russia had put pressure on Turkey which threatened British interests in the Middle East.

1880 · School Attendance Becomes Mandatory for Children

School attendance became compulsory from ages five to ten on August 2, 1880.

1884

Art Nouveau Period (Art and Antiques).

Name Meaning

English and Scottish: occupational name denoting a worker in metal, especially iron, such as a blacksmith or farrier, from Middle English smith ‘smith’ (Old English smith, probably a derivative of smītan ‘to strike, hammer’). Early examples are also found in the Latin form Faber . Metal-working was one of the earliest occupations for which specialist skills were required, and its importance ensured that this term and its equivalents in other languages were the most widespread of all occupational surnames in Europe. Medieval smiths were important not only in making horseshoes, plowshares, and other domestic articles, but above all for their skill in forging swords, other weapons, and armor. This is also the most frequent of all surnames in the US. It is very common among African Americans and Native Americans (see also 5 below). This surname (in any of the two possible English senses; see also below) is also found in Haiti. See also Smither .

English: from Middle English smithe ‘smithy, forge’ (Old English smiththe). The surname may be topographic, for someone who lived in or by a blacksmith's shop, occupational, for someone who worked in one, or habitational, from a place so named, such as Smitha in King's Nympton (Devon). Compare Smithey .

Irish and Scottish: sometimes adopted for Gaelic Mac Gobhann, Irish Mac Gabhann ‘son of the smith’. See McGowan .

Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

Possible Related Names

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