Smith, Samuel, Homesite

Samuel Smith (1800-1873), a native of Switzerland, came to Knox County, Tennessee, at the age of 19. In 1823, he married Oney Karnes and received his United States citizenship four years later. In 1849, the Smiths joined a group of immigrants from North Carolina and Tennessee who journeyed to Texas and founded the town of Knoxville in northeast Cherokee County. Samuel and Oney Smith brought six of their seven children with them to Texas. They purchased land three miles southwest of Knoxville in the Blackjack community. Smith built a farmhouse at this site in 1859, and the homestead remained in the family until 1874. As the patriarch of a family that made significant contributions to the rural Blackjack community, Samuel Smith is an important figure in the context of northeastern Cherokee County history. Members of the Smith family deeded land for the church and cemetery, operated the first blacksmith shop in the settlement, and were associated with the International and Great Northern Railroad when it came through the area in 1872.

Smith, Samuel, Homesite is a historical marker in New Summerfield, Cherokee County, dedicated in 1986. It is one of 112 historical markers documented in Cherokee County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 245 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.0398, -95.0766 near New Summerfield. The nearest cataloged historic site is Griffin (cemetery), about 0.3 miles away. Others within a short drive include Stadler, Robert Graves, Mayfield-Smith, and Couch Family Cemetery.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5073006958. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.