Brief Life History of William Franklin
When William Franklin Smith was born on 10 August 1895, in Poteau, Le Flore, Oklahoma, United States, his father, James Thomas Smith, was 19 and his mother, Molly Collins, was 19. He had at least 4 daughters with Ruth Arillia Barnes. He lived in Ada, Pontotoc, Oklahoma, United States in 1935 and Shawnee, Pottawatomie, Oklahoma, United States in 1940. He died on 15 May 1963, in Modesto, Stanislaus, California, United States, at the age of 67, and was buried in Modesto, Stanislaus, California, United States.
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Family Time Line
Sources (9)
- Willie Smith in household of James T Smith, "United States Census, 1900"
- William Franklin Smith, "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942"
- William F Smith, "California Death Index, 1940-1997"
Spouse and Children
Parents and Siblings
World Events (8)
1896 · Plessy vs. Ferguson
A landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities if the segregated facilities were equal in quality. It's widely regarded as one of the worst decisions in U.S. Supreme Court history.
1906 · Great San Francisco Earthquake
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake shook San Francisco for approximately 60 seconds on April 18, 1906. A 1906 report by US Army Relief Operations recorded the death toll for San Francisco and surrounding areas at 664. Later reports record the number at over 3,000 deaths. An estimated 225,000 people were left homeless from the widespread destructuction as 80% of the city was destroyed.
1913 · The Sixteenth Amendment
The Sixteenth Amendment allows Congress to collect an income tax without dividing it among the states based on population.
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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