Yavapai County AZ Archives Biographies.....Smith, William H. October 2, 1855 - living in 1896
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com March 6, 2005, 3:53 pm

Author: McFarland & Poole

p. 501-502

  WILLIAM H. SMITH. A noteworthy business man of Prescott, Arizona Territory, is
he whose name heads this sketch, and the welfare and progress of the city and
county in which he resides has always been of great interest to him. His walk
through life has been attended with success, for he not only commands the
respect of his fellows, but has accumulated a comfortable competency, the
restilt of his own shrewdness and farsightedness. He owes his nativity to
Detroit, Mich., where he was bom October 2, 1855, a son of John H. and S. B.
(Riedell) Smith, who died in Detroit and Bay City, Mich., respectively, when the
subject of this sketch was quite young. They had removed to Bay City in 1861 or
1862, and there their home continued to be until the subject of this sketch was
about thirteen years of age. He had served an apprenticeship at the butchers'
business, and at the age of seventeen he decided to seek his fortune in the
West, and for some time was a resident of San Francisco, Cal. From there he
removed to Healdsburgh, Sonoma County, Cal., and was there in business for
himself until 1876, when he sold out and went to Humboldt County, in search of a
better location, and finally drifted back to San Francisco, and early in 1879,
in a suburb of that city, began buying-sheep. In the latter part of that year he
came to Arizona Territory, and after locating in Prescott worked for others
until the firm of Akers & Smith was established in 1880, which business was
conducted with reasonable success for fourteen months. Mr. Smith then sold out
his interest in the establishment to Joseph Walker, and afterward established
the Smith Brothers' Meat Market, which at a still later period was consolidated
with the establishment of Mr. Walker, and these gentlemen did business together
for about one and one-half years, then sold out their establishment to a Mr.
Coffee. Immediately after going out of this business Mr. Smith began raising
live stock on his ranch about thirty-five miles northwest of Prescott, but
shortly after settling there a stock company was formed known as the Yavapai
Stockgrowers' Meat Market, of which Mr. Walker was made manager. After his
resignation John H. Smith, brother of the subject of this sketch, became the
manager, and at the end of two years the Smith Brothers bought out the
Stockgrowers' Meat Market, which they together conducted very successfully for
five years. Since the 25th of December, 1895, William H. Smith has been the sole
proprietor of the business, and is doing remarkably well. He is also quite an
extensive stockman, and with Levi Bashford owns large stock interests. Mr. Smith
was married January 8. 1880, to Miss Elizabeth Bernhart, a native of California,
and their union has resulted in the birth of the following children: Isabel,
Gertrude, Anna, William, Ray, and Charles. Mr. Smith is a well-known member of
the I. O. O. F. and belongs to the Encampment.


Additional Comments:
From:

A Historical and Biographical Record of the Territory of Arizona
Published by
McFarland & Poole, Chicago, 1896

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/az/yavapai/bios/gbs72smith.txt

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