Anderson Smith

Anderson Smith (1800-1890) was one of the first settlers along Station Camp Creek in what is now the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area. He and his wife, Sarah, settled near where Station Camp merges with Laurel Fork Creek, approximately one mile west of the Big South Fork River. He was the grandfather of noted Big South Fork settler John Hawk Smith.

See Also: Noteworthy Settlers of the Big South Fork Region

Biography

Anderson Smith was born in 1800. His parents were Joseph Smith and Anna Osbourne. He married Sarah “Sally” Slaven (1796-1888), the daughter of Richard Harve Slaven and Susannah Mounts. They settled at the fork of Laurel Fork Creek and Station Camp Creek in the 1820s.

Anderson and Sally Smith had at least seven surviving children, with Mary, born about 1831, being the oldest. Others include William, born about 1833; Abraham, born about 1837; Elizabeth, born about 1839; Samuel, born about 1841; George, born about 1843; and David. Big South Fork NRRA historical documents list Catharine Smith Blevins as the daughter of Anderson and Sally Smith. However, Catharine Smith — who is the namesake of Katie Blevins Cemetery at Bandy Creek — was born in 1814; Anderson and Sally Smith were not married until 1830.

Smith purchased the farm that is now Charit Creek Lodge in 1853. 

Civil War years

In May 1863, Confederate guerrillas raided Anderson Smith’s farm as part of an assault on Station Camp Creek and surrounding settlements along the Big South Fork River. Nearby, two teenage boys died due to suffocation as they hid beneath a heavy mattress to avoid being pressed into service. That night, the Confederate soldiers were massacred as they sought shelter in the home of Jonathan Burke near No Business.

Death

Anderson Smith died in 1890 at about age 90. He was buried at Chimney Rocks Cemetery. Sarah died in 1888 and is also buried at Chimney Rocks.

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