Multnomah County OR Archives Biographies.....Smith, W. G. E. 1881 - 
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Ila Wakley iwakley@msn.com November 10, 2009, 12:51 pm

Source: History of the Columbia River Valley From The Dalles to the Sea, Vol. III, Published 1928, Pages 226 - 227
Author: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company

     W. G. E. SMITH, one of Portland's progressive business men, is well known 
as the executive head of the Smith & Valley Iron Works Company, a pioneer 
commercial institution which has existed for sixty-five years, contributing 
materially toward the industrial development of this region. Born in 1881 at 
the corner of First and Harrison streets, his parents were Charles E. and 
Hedwig Anna (Hansen) Smith, natives respectively of Switzerland and Denmark. 
About 1845, when a boy of seven, Charles E. Smith made the voyage to America 
and toward the close of the '50s journeyed to the Pacific coast in a covered 
wagon drawn by oxen. In 1859 he reached Sacramento, California, and later came 
to Oregon, locating in Portland, where his brother, Ferdinand Smith, had 
previously settled. In 1862 they opened a small shop and this constituted the 
nucleus of the business to which members of the family have since devoted 
their energies. In 1912 Charles E. Smith responded to the final summons but 
his widow still makes her home in Portland.

     In their family were eight children and their sons, W. G. E. and Stanley 
C. E. Smith, are now conducting the business, which has assumed extensive 
proportions. In the early days the firm made a large amount of mining and 
sawmill machinery, later featuring sawmill and logging equipment. It was 
during the '80s that the company constructed in this shop the first 
caterpillar seen in this part of the country. This was made for carrying heavy 
machinery, which previous to that time was dragged to the mines on wagons, and 
the new device was named the Caterpillar Bummer. During the World war the 
plant was turned over to the government and utilized for manufacturing all the 
auxiliary machinery required by the Columbia Shipbuilding Corporation. Many 
kinds of special machinery originated in the Smith & Valley Iron Works and the 
company is now building various types of machines for use in the pulp and 
paper mills on the western coast. The firm is affiliated with the Valley Iron 
Works Company of Appleton, Wisconsin, manufacturing their line in Portland 
under the direction of the chief engineer of that corporation, and the 
equipment is sold to all the paper mills on the Pacific coast. The plant is 
located on the ground formerly occupied by the old territorial penitentiary, 
which stood on a toliroad constituting the only highway leading from Portland 
to the Willamette valley. When the old structure was torn down the good bricks 
were saved and utilized in making the new building, which is thoroughly modern 
and fully equipped. W. G. E. Smith is an executive of more than the average 
capacity and under his expert administration the industry has made notable 
strides. From the time of its organization the company has maintained an 
unblemished record of honorable dealing, consistently adhering to the 
principle that a public service is a public trust, and the confidence and 
loyalty of its patrons is the most valuable asset of the firm.

     Mr. Smith married Miss Olive Smart, of Bellingham, Washington, and the 
children of this union are Patricia Ann and Virginia N. Mr. Smith belongs to 
the Arlington and Multnomah Clubs and the members of his firm are affiliated 
with the Chamber of Commerce. In politics he follows an independent course, 
casting his ballot according to the dictates of his judgment, and supports all 
measures of progress, reform and improvement. He is liberal and broad-minded 
in his views on all subjects and an upright, useful life has established him 
high in the esteem of Portland's citizens.

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