Smith County

James Smith was born in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, in 1792 and served in the War of 1812, the Handbook of Texas says, including the Creek wars and the Battle of New Orleans. He came to Texas in 1835, settled at Nacogdoches and built a large plantation that sheltered settlers from surrounding counties in 1837 and 1838. He was elected brigadier general in March 1840 and sat in the Texas House for Rusk County from 1846 to 1847. Henderson stands on land given to him, and he lies in a brick vault in its Smith Park.

What the plaque says

Smith County Formed from Nacogdoches County. Created April 11, 1846, organized July 13, 1846, named in honor of General James Smith. Pioneer soldier and statesman, friend of General Sam Houston, Thomas J. Rusk and J. Pinckney Henderson. Born September 10, 1792, died December 25, 1855. Buried with military honors at Henderson. Tyler, the county seat.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Tyler Rose Garden and Rose Museum — 3.7 mi
  More than 38,000 rose bushes of about 600 cultivars in a free city garden, beside a museum of the Texas Rose Festival, which began in 1933, and of the rose industry.
• Goodman-LeGrand House and Museum — 4.9 mi
  A Tyler house begun in 1859 as four rooms, enlarged by the Goodman family over 73 years, and left to the city in 1939 with its furnishings, in a garden that fills a city block.
• Camp Ford Historic Park — 7.2 mi
  A free county park north of Tyler on the site of the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi, with a kiosk, an interpretive trail and a historical society museum downtown.
• Tyler State Park — 10 mi
  A 985-acre park eight miles north of Tyler, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps from 1935 to 1941 around a 64-acre spring-fed lake, with more than 13 miles of trails.

More markers nearby

• Smith County Rose Industry and the Tyler Rose Garden — 3.8 mi
• Butler College — 3.9 mi
• Richard Bennett Hubbard — 4.4 mi
• Colonel Bryan Marsh — 4.8 mi