Maryland State Archives

Two cases filed against Henry Smith & Sons Company

1. Ella Leonard and husband, Enoch W. v. Henry Smith and Sons
2. Enoch W. Leonard v. Henry Smith and Sons.

Plaintiffs sue for costs of medical care, attention and treatment, and damages.
Defendant, H. Smith and Sons Co., accused of negligence for tossing an object from atop a structure, under construction, striking Mrs. Leonard and causing severe head and body injuries.
Both cases satisfied and dismissed by plaintiff.

- Born 7 October 1851
- Died 27 April1927
- Attended Columbian College in Washington D.C. 1871-1873 (name change 1904, George Washington University)
- Studied Architecture at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (“Boston Tech”) 1873-1874
- Worked for the Architecture Firm of (E.F.)Baldwin and Price, 1874
- Started own firm by 1877 and soon after his cousin joined him to form the firm of J.A. & W.T. Wilson
- Designed Homes, Churches, and Community and Industrial buildings, in Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina
- Considered an “Urban Eclectic Architect” by some
- Worked with Frank B. Mayer on investigating the feasibility of restoring Maryland State House Senate Chambers back to original condition (worked for free)

- Parents: Reverend Franklin and Virginia Appleton Wilson
- Married May Wade, 16 October 1877 and had one daughter, Virginia Appleton Wilson
- Historic Preservationist who served on Baltimore’s Municipal Art Commission
- Member of Maryland Historical Society
- Officer in The Society of Colonial Wars
- Member of The Sons of the Revolution
- Member of the Society of the War of 1812
- Participant in Dedication of Fort McHenry as a Public Park and restoration to its original form
- Designed the Monument to the 2nd Maryland Regiment C.S.A., on Culps Hill, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

- Federal Census:

- 1860
- 1870
- 1880
- 1900
- 1920

Henry Smith

- Born 3 October 1831 at Hesse Darmstadt, Germany
- Moved, with parents, to Baltimore in 1846
- Married Miss Elizabeth C. Dietz, of Germany, 26 July 1852

- Started his own contracting/ building business in 1858-1859
- Had to move the shop in 1883, due to growth, to 116, 118, and 120 South Regester Street, where he established a mill
- Circa 1891, shortly after the death of Henry Smith, Henry Smith & Sons firm formed (continuation of Henry Smiths business with three sons now involved)
- Was a Director in The German American Bank
- Baltimore home address: 110 S. Broadway

- Died 21 September 1890
- Certificate of Death, Health Department, City of Baltimore

- Federal Census:

- 1850
- 1860
- 1870
- 1880

Henry Smith Jr.

- Born 1853, in Baltimore
- Studied architecture at the Maryland Institute
- Married Miss Augusta Stoll
- Five children
- Was a director of The German American Bank and the Howard Fire Insurance Company, of Baltimore

- Federal Census:

- 1860
- 1870
- 1880
- 1900
- 1910

John A. Smith

- Born 25 January 1867, in Baltimore
- Educated at Baltimore City College, Sadler’s and the Maryland Institute
- Bookkeeper for Henry Smith & Sons

- Federal Census:

- 1870
- 1880
- 1920

William A. Smith

- Born 18 December 1869, in Baltimore
- Educated at Baltimore City College
- Married Miss Ellen Hiltz
- Two children

-Federal Census:

- 1870
- 1880
- 1900
- 1910
- 1920
- 1930

- Born 14 September 1845 at Havre de Grace, Maryland
- December 1864 Graduated from Eastman National Poughkeepsie Business College, N.Y.
- 1865 Started a Lumber Business in Havre de Grace
- 1878 Joined his father in brick molding sand shipping business
- June 1886 Married Annie Clayton
- Parents, Robert R. and Mary Russell Vandiver
- Had three brothers and three sisters
- Two children, Robert M. and Dorothy
- Died 23 May 1916 near Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania
- Buried at Angel Hill Cemetery, Harford County, Maryland

Political Affairs:

- 1873 Harford County, Maryland, Democratic Executive Committee
- 1876 Elected to Maryland House of Delegates (Harford County)
- 1878 Re-elected to Maryland House of Delegates
- 1878 Wrote the Charter that incorporated the City of Havre de Grace - 1880 Elected to Maryland House of Delegates
- 1885-1886 Mayor of Havre de Grace
- 1887-1892 Secretary and Treasurer of the Democratic State Executive Committee
- 1892 Elected to the Maryland House of Delegates
- 1892 Chosen as Speaker of the House
- 1892 Delegate to the Democratic National Convention (Chicago), voted for Hon. A.P. Gorman, nomination went to Cleveland
- 1892 Appointed a Commissioner to the Worlds Fair (1892-1893 Chicago)
- 1892-1893 Appointed by President Grover Cleveland to position of Collector of Internal Revenue for Maryland, Washington D.C., Delaware and Virginia’s Eastern Shore
- 1896 Delegate to Democratic National Convention (Chicago), voted for former Pennsylvania Governor, Robert E. Pattison, nomination went to William Jennings Bryan
- 1897-1901 Chairman, Democratic State Central Committee
- 1900 Delegate to Democratic National Convention (Kansas City, Missouri), nomination to William Jennings Bryan
- 1900-1916 Elected Treasurer of the State of Maryland
- 1904 Delegate to the Democratic National Convention (St. Louis, Missouri), nomination to Alton B. Parker
- Appointed Colonel on staff of Governor Robert M. McLane and Brigadier General on the staff of Governor John Walter Smith

Official Documents:

Inventory of Personal Estate

Death Certificate

Federal Census:

1860
1870
1880
1900
1920