Anson County NcArchives Biographies.....Smith, Mary Jane Bennett 1842 - 
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 February 15, 2008, 10:06 pm

Author: Leonard Wilson  (1916)

MARY JANE BENNETT SMITH

IF the accepted definition of a heroine-a woman of a brave and self-sacrificing
spirit-be correct, then, indeed, the life and the work of that most estimable
lady whose name heads this page, entitles her to permanent place amongst those
heroines of American history who have voluntarily rendered noble, courageous and
valuable service to mankind. The record of the lives of such brave and devoted
souls is tenderly cherished by posterity and the whole nation properly delights
to perpetuate and honor their memory. A true heroine was the late Mary Jane
Bennett Smith, wife of Major William A. Smith, of Ansonville, North Carolina.

    Proud of her ancestry, she was yet simple and sincere; educated, she was a
friend to the unlettered while a foe to ignorance; possessing exceptional
personal attractions and charm, together with a carriage graceful in the
extreme, she was approachable and unaffected; wealthy, she was tender-hearted
and charitable. Her ear was always open to the cry of distress, her sympathy
ever ready to comfort and her hand swift to relieve. "She spent her days doing
good." No spectacular or sensational effect marked her actions-no wide notoriety
or public applause did she covet. A higher and better reward was hers in the
profound respect and esteem felt by all who knew her, in the admiration and
gratitude of those she helped, and in the deep and true affection of her
relatives and friends. A cultured lady of gentle birth and of many attractions
and accomplishments, such was the beauty of her Christian character, such her
devotion to all that is good and true, and so great the natural kindness of her
heart, impelling her to assist all to whom she could in any way be of service,
that a volume of this character and scope would be incomplete should more
extended mention of her life and virtues be omitted.

    The Bennett family, from which this gracious lady was descended, is of
ancient English lineage and includes many personages amongst its members, both
in the Old and the New World. The family name of the Earls of Arlington is
Bennett, and others bearing the same surname have rendered important and
valuable service in their day. Prominent in the family history of Mrs. Bennett
Smith is Major-General Richard Bennett, an officer of high reputation and tried
courage who exercised command in Cromwell's Army. On the passing of the power of
the Roundheads and the revulsion of public sentiment in England in favor of the
restoration of the monarchy, followed by the accession to the throne of Charles
II, General Bennett, fearing, perhaps, for his personal safety, crossed the
ocean and came to Virginia. Even there, however, he was not beyond the reach of
action on the part of the Royalists detrimental to his interests, for Sir
William Berkeley, the then Governor of the Colony, forced him to flee into
Maryland where he settled in the County of Anne Arundel. Two of the General's
brothers, named respectively, William and Neville, also emigrated to America and
took up their residence in Anson County, North Carolina, about 1740.

    The William Bennett here referred to married a Miss Hucksten. This couple
had two children, a son, William, Junior, and a daughter, Elizabeth. William,
Senior, twice remarried, was the father of other children and removed to the
State of South Carolina. He saw active service as a captain in the army during
the War of the Revolution and died in the town of Bennettsville-thus named as a
tribute to his personality and service -September 1, 1815. His children,
Elizabeth and William, Junior, continued to reside in Anson County, the latter
marrying, in 1794, Susanna, daughter of the famous Dunn family of Virginia, with
which Sir David Dunn and his brother William were identified. Susanna's mother
was Mary Sheffield, of Virginia. A son born to William and Susanna was named
Lemuel Dunn Bennett. He married Jane Little, whose father came from Marlsgate,
Cumberland, England. The Littles were a family of prominence and had
intermarried with the Scott family of England and with the Lords of the Manor of
Askerton. Mrs. Mary Jane Bennett Smith, of whose family we are now treating, was
the daughter of Lemuel Dunn Bennett and his wife Jane.

    The members of the Bennett family, both in the direct line and collateral
branches, seem to be noted for the possession of an unusually strong and
vigorous mentality. Among them stand out conspicuously the late Risden Tyler
Bennett-Judge, Member of Congress and Colonel-and Mrs. Bennett Smith of whom we
write.

    Born February 21, 1842, Mary, as she was known to her intimate friends, grew
to be the sunshine of her parents' home. There, tenderly cared for and
safeguarded from all that would tend to harm, she was educated by private tutors
until of age to enter college. She then studied at the well-known Salem Academy,
and, later, graduated from St. Mary's at Raleigh. To this refined home
influence, to the affectionate solicitude of her parents, to the private
instruction she received and to the completion of her education in
college-supplemented, of course, by natural ability and the innate sweetness of
her disposition-is undoubtedly due the perfection of her character as it
developed in later life.

    Her talents were many and varied, and it was hard to find any accomplishment
in which she did not excel. Of the arts in their various forms she was an
interested student, unusually skilful in their manipulation. Music was her
comfort and joy; her pianoforte, touched by her capable fingers, giving sweet
and sympathetic expression to the harmonies she loved. Painting often claimed
her attention, and in the working of tapestry and in all kinds of needlecraft
she was an authority. Her interest in culinary and domestic science was active
and sustained. Floriculture, in which she was very successful, yielded her much
pleasure. The cultivation of the rose was her passion, her collection of the
queen of flowers being unrivaled. It was often said of her, so complete was her
knowledge of literature, so extended her fund of general information and so
remarkable her memory, that she was a veritable "walking encyclopaedia" to whom
many turned for information and advice. A thrice delightful companion was
she-eminent for her personal charms, for the brilliancy of her mental
attainments and for the keenness of her natural wit.

    Added to all this, Mrs. Bennett Smith was "beautiful, queenly and gracious;"
her smile was as an illumination and gave an "indescribable loveliness to her
face." Yet, withal, she was most modest and unassuming, with an utter lack of
arrogance or self-consciousness. Nor did she need strength of character or
determination of purpose. These traits, as well as her personal bravery when
occasion required it, were well exemplified when, during the troublous days of
the Civil War, she did not hesitate to defend her imperiled honor by presenting
a pistol in the face of Sherman's army. The key-note of her character was,
however, her unselfishness-her kindness of heart and her generous helpfulness
overshadowing all else.

    In December, 1869, she married Major William A. Smith, a gentleman of means
and prominence, a sketch of whose life appears elsewhere in this volume. In him
she found a fitting helpmate and a ready sympathizer in all the noble work she
planned. Three children came to them, two of whom died while very young. The
remaining daughter, to the profound grief of her parents, passed away in the
full bloom of young womanhood when in her seventeenth year. The loss of the
children was the supreme sorrow of the mother's life, some expression of which
was given by Major Smith by the foundation, in Ansonville, of an educational
institution called "Nona Institute," in memory of the little daughter, Nona, who
died at the age of four years, and also by the erection of the "Etta and Nona"
cloisters of the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee.

    Of an inquiring mind and tenacious memory Mrs. Bennett Smith profited
greatly by her travels in her own land and by the several trips which she made
through Europe and the Orient. Keenly observant, she noted the new and strange,
acquired information, and, on her return, introduced practical and beneficial
changes in dress, cooking, etc.-changes which were subsequently largely adopted
by the community. A true daughter of the South, she loved all that pertained to
it. She claimed membership both in the Daughters of the Confederacy and the
Daughters of the American Revolution.

    In nothing was the character of this American heroine more marked than in
her devotion to the Christian religion and in her loyalty to the Episcopal
Church of which she was a faithful adherent. Hers was practical Christianity;
she searched for and found the poor and needy and quietly and confidentially
opened her purse liberally to them. Her charity abounded without ostentation.
Like the Great Master, she "went about doing good."

    The home of Major and Mrs. Smith, known as "The Oaks," is celebrated for its
location, its extent and its comfort. Old Colonial furniture, silver and glass,
inherited from their forbears, appropriately decorate its interior. The garden,
abounding in rare flowers and beautiful plants, claims the admiration of all and
speaks eloquently of Mrs. Smith's special knowledge of and love for the jewels
of the sod. The grass, the flowers, the trees, the graceful buildings, the
horses and cows browsing peacefully in the rolling pastures, the large fish
preserve, the Lake of Skye in the near distance, all aid in forming a scene of
beauty and of calm content upon which it is a continual delight to gaze.
Hospitality swings wide the door of this Southern home in a generous land
provided only the guests be worthy. It was the home of one dear to many, of one
who has now entered into her Great Inheritance, and whose memory rises fragrant
as the beautiful flowers she loved so well. It was the home of Mary Jane Bennett
Smith. May the Reward treasured up for her be liberal and her Welcome sure!


Additional Comments:

Extracted from:

MAKERS OF AMERICA
BIOGRAPHIES OF LEADING MEN OF THOUGHT AND ACTION

THE MEN WHO CONSTITUTE THE BONE AND SINEW OF AMERICAN PROSPERITY AND LIFE

VOLUME II

By
LEONARD WILSON,
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ASSISTED BY PROMINENT HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL WRITERS
Illustrated with many full page engravings
B. F. JOHNSON, INC.
CITY OF WASHINGTON, U. S. A.
1916

Copyright, 1916
by
B. F. Johnson, Inc.


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