Guide to the Archival Collections.pdf - Missouri History Museum

George Smith (1844-1879) was born in Virginia, and educated as a lawyer in Kentucky. He
came to Missouri in 1833 with his wife and two little girls, and his wife's family, General David
Thomson. He later settled in Georgetown, Pettis County, Missouri. As one of the promoters of
the Pacific Railroad, he founded Sedalia in 1856. General Smith was a strong supporter of the
Union and became an active politician in the Whig, Know-Nothing, and American parties, and
was a candidate for Congress in 1846, and 1856-1858. He was also in the Santa Fe freighting
business, 1848-1852, and contracted for mail deliveries in 1851. Under Governor Hamilton R.
Gamble, General Smith served as adjutant general for three months in 1861. Although a
slaveholder, General Smith was an abolitionist. He died July 11, 1879.
Correspondence pertaining to General George R. Smith's public and family life; among the
correspondents discussing the national political scene are James H. Birch, John S. Phelps, John
Wilson, and Silas Reed; manuscript of "A Maker of Missouri," a biography of George R. Smith
(1804-1879) in his relations to the economic, political and social life of central Missouri before
and during the Civil War, by Samuel Bannister Harding, 1901. Also includes a manuscript of
Bacon Montgomery (title unknown).
Cite as: George R. Smith Papers, Missouri History Museum Archives, St. Louis.
A1527
Smith, Jedediah Strong (1798-1831).
Papers, 1826-1928. 3 folders (approximately 25 items)
Jedediah Smith, David E. Jackson and William L. Sublette bought William H. Ashley's fur
trading business in 1826 and carried on until 1830 when they sold it to other mountain men,
among them, James Bridger. Jedediah Smith was killed by the Comanches in 1831.
Journal of a journey, original and typescript, August 7, 1826, to June 21, 1827. Journey
started in Soda Springs, Idaho, thru Utah to San Diego, back thru Sierra Nevada Mountains, ends
in Utah. Vivid descriptions of Indians, places visited, etc. Also contains correspondence of
Smith, 1829-1831, to William Clark, family, etc., concerning his travels and life, typescripts.
Also includes some articles and correspondence about the collection.
Cite as: Jedediah Strong Smith Papers, Missouri History Museum Archives, St. Louis.
A1528
Smith, Louis Chouteau (1831-1899).
Family Papers, 1803-1913. 20 items
Family papers including obituaries for Louis Chouteau Smith, who died January 31, 1899, at
his home, 2933 Lucas Ave., St. Louis; instructions from Capt. T.F. Smith to G.W. Harrison for
Dubuque's Reservation, May 17, 1833; and stock certificate for Gunnison Gold and Iron Fields
Development Co., Gunnison, Colorado, and St. Louis, November 12, 1900.
Cite as: Louis Chouteau Smith Family Papers, Missouri History Museum Archives, St. Louis.
A1529
Smith, Luther Ely (1873-1951).
Family Papers, 1821-1958. 42 boxes; 8 volumes; 1 oversize folder
The Luther Ely Smith Papers consist primarily of personal, family, and business records. The
collection documents the life of his father, Luther Rominor Smith, a Reconstruction Republican
judge and plantation owner in Alabama and later government official in the U.S. Department of
the Interior in Washington, D.C., as well as his own career and family life as a prominent
Republican attorney and civic leader in Democratic St. Louis. The bulk of the collection consists
of Luther Ely Smith's personal and business papers, 1888-1951, with most of the material dating