An undated photograph of 24Thomas,1 edited slightly from its original appearance; see the raw scan. I have one other photo of 24Thomas; see below.1

An undated photograph of 24Thomas,1 edited slightly from its original appearance; see the raw scan. I have one other photo of 24Thomas; see below.

An undated photograph of 24Thomas,1 edited slightly from its original appearance; see the raw scan. I have one other photo of 24Thomas; see below.

24Thomas J. Smith was born 19 April 18662 in Houston County, Georgia2,3 to parents 48William Harvey Smith2-4 and 49Elizabeth Jane Ammons.2,3

The 1870 and 1880 censuses show him in Houston County with his parents.4,5

1870: 24Thomas' family in Houston County, Georgia. Full page.5

1880: 24Thomas' family in militia district 527 (map), Houston County, Georgia. Full page.4

24Thomas married 25Dollie Oxley on 15 November 1891.6 The local newspaper reported their marriage; a copy of the article is below.7

24Thomas' and 25Dollie Oxley's marriage record. Bigger copy.6
 

Their marriage mentioned in the newspaper. Full page.7

The next several censuses show their family growing over the decades:

1900: 24Thomas' family in militia district 527, Houston County, Georgia. Full page.8

1910: 24Thomas' family in militia district 500 (map), Houston County, Georgia. Full page.9

1920: 24Thomas' family in militia district 769 (map), Houston County, Georgia. Full page.10

1930: 24Thomas' family in Houston County, Georgia. Full page.11

Although not dated, the photograph below was probably taken circa 1926, judging by the apparent ages of the two youngest children, who are said to be Mary Annie and Susie Mae (also named in the 1930 census above).12

24Thomas, 25Dollie, and grandchildren Mary Annie and Susie Mae. The four people on the left side of the photo are unidentified. I've colorized and enhanced the image; use the slider to see the image in its more original appearance, or see my original, raw scan.

24Thomas, 25Dollie, and grandchildren Mary Annie and Susie Mae. The four people on the left side of the photo are unidentified. Edited; see my original, raw scan.

Judging by his wife Dollie's obituary,12 they moved to Macon circa 1935. Her obituary reports their address as "525 Log Cabin boulevard," although no such address exists now.13 There are several roads in Macon with similar names, namely Log Cabin Court, Log Cabin Way, Log Cabin Place, and (the most prominent) Log Cabin Road.

After his wife's death, 24Thomas seems to have moved into an almshouse, at least temporarily. I haven't determined the precise location of the almshouse, but it was somewhere in east Macon.14

24Thomas in an almshouse in the 1940 census. Full page.14

He apparently moved out of the almshouse at least a few months before he died. His death certificate shows his address as 238 Heard Avenue,2 but this may be an error. Bibb County's tax records show 511 Heard Avenue as the lowest-numbered property on Heard Avenue. Furthermore, we know that 24Thomas lived with his son 12Henry at 531 Heard Avenue at some point, as explained by two of his grandchildren during an interview in 2016:15

[redacted, 6]

To protect my privacy and security, the names of certain close relatives have been redacted.

This individual is my maternal grandfather (ahnentafel #6).

: All I know is one of 'em lived in the little house right behind the house... on Heard Avenue.

[redacted, 3]

To protect my privacy and security, the names of certain close relatives have been redacted.

This individual is my mother (ahnentafel #3).

: Which one was this one?

[6]: I think it was my Daddy's Daddy.

Joyce: It was. That was on Heard Avenue. See, they thought he had TB.

[6]: Yeah.

Joyce: And he built a little hou--a little place right there behind that house on Heard Avenue for him to live in.

[...]

Joyce: Come to find out it wasn't TB. Later, it was, he had scars on his, uh, on his lungs and all. It was where had pneumonia. And it wasn't TB. After that he come back and stayed in the house some. But Daddy did build him a hou--uh, a room back of the house.15

24Thomas died the morning of 13 January 1947 due to "pneumonia, uremia, cardiovascular disease" at the Macon Hospital (now named Medical Center Navicent Health). His death certificate2 and obituary3 are below.

 

According to his death certificate, 24Thomas is buried in the Smith family cemetery in Houston County, Georgia2 on property which his grandfather had owned roughly a century earlier. Unfortunately, the exact location of his grave is no longer marked, although there are several nameless tombstones in the cemetery. The cemetery is at coordinates N32.5839 W83.6622.

Sources Cited:

1: Copy of a photograph labeled "Thomas Jessie Smith," provided to me by 24Thomas' grandson Lamon Smith on 14 September 2011. Again, this is a copy; I did not see the original photograph and don't know whether it still exists. The image depicted above has been cropped and color-adjusted; to see the raw, unedited scan, go here.

2: Bibb County, Georgia death certificate 133 for Thomas J. Smith, who died 13 January 1947

3: "Smith Final Rites Scheduled for Today," The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), Tuesday 14 January 1947, page 2, column 5, about one-third of the way down the page

4: 1880 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 527, Houston County, Georgia. Supervisor's district 5, enumeration district not stated, page 309A, dwelling 235, family 235, Harvey Smith household. NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 152. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYBH-64M?i=24&cc=1417683&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AM8G4-DQ3>.

5: 1870 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Subdivision 167, Houston County, Georgia. Pages 47-48, dwelling 379, family 381, W. Harvey Smith household. NARA microfilm publication M593, roll 158. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-68R9-3Z2?i=46&cc=1438024&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMC3C-DFY>.

6: Houston County, Georgia. Marriage book D (1875-1898), page 329, marriage of Thomas J. Smith and Dollie Oxley, dated 15 November 1891. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSW8-QJSL?cc=2748952&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQL8J-7RBL>.

7: "Dennard Dots," The Houston Home Journal (Perry, Georgia), 26 November 1891, page 3, column 6, top of the page. Georgia Historic Newspapers, <https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/lccn/sn89053612/1891-11-26/ed-1/seq-3/>, accessed 16 April 2020.

8: 1900 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 527, Houston County, Georgia. Enumeration district 8, sheet 35B, dwelling 686, family 693, T. J. Smith household. NARA microfilm publication T623, roll 205. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-63VS-72T?i=68&cc=1325221&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AM3JH-HL8>.

9: 1910 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 500, Houston County, Georgia. Enumeration district 39, sheet 8A, dwelling 122, family 122, Thomas J. Smith household. NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 195. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RVP-KSX?i=14&cc=1727033&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AML24-9RK>.

10: 1920 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 769, Houston County, Georgia. Enumeration district 49, sheets 5B and 6A, dwelling 104, family 104, Thomas J. Smith household. NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 263. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9R63-F26?i=9&cc=1488411&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMJ6C-287>.

11: 1930 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Houston County, Georgia. Enumeration district 77-9, sheet 3A, dwelling 53, family 55, T. J. Smith household. NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 369. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRH7-72Y?i=5&cc=1810731&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3A3WFH-5PZ>.

12: Photograph of 24Thomas, his wife 25Dollie, and other people, provided to me by 24Thomas' grandson Lamon Smith on 14 September 2011. Lamon had possession of the original photograph itself. The image depicted above has been cropped and color-adjusted; to see the raw, unedited scan, go here. You may also want to look at the back of the photograph since it helps to identify some of the other people shown.

13: "Bailey to Conduct Smith Rites Today," The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), 22 July 1939, page 7, column 6, bottom of the page

14: 1940 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 514, Bibb County, Georgia. Enumeration district 11-63, sheet 11A, Bibb County almshouse, line 28, Thomas J. Smith. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9M1-4SM7?i=20&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AK72K-LSH>.