While mining away on Ancestry looking into the Smith side of our family. I came across a photo of our great-grandmother, Margaret "Maggie" Brown. It wasn't just an photo either. It was one I had seen many times. Only this time in color.

great-grandmother Maggie Brown

Taken in her backyard in Englewood NJ. Backing on to Mackay Park on the other side of the brook.

I know I've seen that photo of Maggie Brown several times. The background is reconizable as Englewood. Mackay Park. Great grandmother lived on the other side of the brook with Aunt (great aunt) Anna. Just a few houses down from James C. Smith her son, our grandfather.

Any way the photo had the caption of Leslie Golson.

The photo was on at least 2 different ancestry trees. I contacted 2 of them. I was granted access to view their trees. (This is when I could see them with a paying $ubscription) and Pow! there were a bunch of Smiths. Including... wait for it... James G Smith. Our great-grandfather.

He's been an enigma from the beginning. We have, or I have a single photo of him standing with Maggie Brown with his bowler hat. You can definitely see where grandaddy gets his looks.

Fuel to the fire

After contacting Loren I found that she had some other photos. This time of Aunt (great-aunt) Anna at the NY World's Fair. Now this is really cosmic conjuncture happening here.

Loren has photos from her mother and grandmother that were unidentified except for any writinig on them. No one knew who this Aunt Anna was. Well that was quick to remedy.

Aunt Anna

Taken at the New York World's Fair 1965.

Back of the photo of aunt Anna

I also confirmed that the photos were indeed of Maggie Brown and taken in Englewood NJ. All I knew from my mother (aunt Therese) was that her grandfather had come up from Georgia. We could tell from Loren's tree that her great grandmother, Maria Smith, had 18 siblings. Yes 18. You have to imagine. Slavery existed in the South up until, nominally, 1865.

As far as we can tell 2 of James G Smith's sisters made it to Mass. If James G went to Mass and went South to NJ or stopped in NJ we don't know. Probably never will.

Loren's family is descended from Maria Smith who settled in Massachusetts. Now this starts to air out another family story that I've heard.

Mystery solved?

Uncle Leon told the story of when his Uncle Joe Smith passed grandaddy took his brother up to Massachusetts to be buried. But he wouldn't let him go up with him. No explanation was given. Knowing grandaddy there wasn't any how or who Uncle Leon was going to change that decision. He was well beyond the "cut me a switch" age by then but he probably knew better that to butt heads with his father. Grandaddy could be very stern when he wanted to be.

So in Loren's Smith tree there is a Joseph C Smith who is buried in Springfield, Mass. He is a sibling to James G Smith. Okay so is this another Joseph Smith. Or it the same "brother" to grandaddy. He is buried up in Springfield. I hope to get there someday. So we know what the connection is between NJ and MA. But not much more than that. Unfortunately for all this genealogy research, all our primary sources have passed on. It's a shame we/I didn't pay more attention when we/I were/was younger.

See the family tree

Smiths Family Tree

If any of you out there reading this has any information or stories to share that will further this along please let me know. At least Loren has a lot of well organized information but the thing is she never knew that James G Smith had a family and children.

Up until now.....

Hi cousin Loren.