Charles H. Smith collection (MSS-0006)

Biographical/Historical Note

Charles H. Smith was born in Providence around 1846 to John H. Smith and Betsy Briggs Smith. After graduating from Providence High School, he worked as a figuring clerk for some time in the 1860s for Gorham Manufacturing, before establishing himself as a real estate agent and investor in the 1870s. In 1875, he married Clara Danforth Cheney Holbrook and they adopted a son, Henry Beckwith Smith, in 1886. In 1882, Charles Smith joined the Rhode Island Historical Society as a member of the Finance Committee and throughout his life, he gave many benefactions to educational institutions and hospitals in Providence.

After Smith’s passing in 1900, his estate was inherited by his son, Henry B. Smith, and managed by a board of trustees until Henry Smith’s death when it was given to the City of Providence under the condition that revenue from the estate be used to maintain Roger Williams Park.