Page:The Stained Glass Windows of the German Reformed Church in Brunswick, MD.pdf/9

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Charles M. Smith was born April 1, 1867, in Pennsylvania, possibly in or near McConnellsburg, in Fulton County. I have not been able to find any information on his family or his early years.

Charles met Matilda K. Wilson (from Bellefonte, PA, 100 miles north of McConnellsburg) and they were married in 1896 at St. James United Church of Christ in Bellefonte. He was 29, and she was 20. Their first child died in infancy.

In 1900, the Smiths were living in McConnellsburg where he was a minister. They were still living in Pennsylvania in 1904 when their second child, Lawrence M. Smith, was born.

In 1906, the family moved to Burkittsville, MD, where he became the minister of the Resurrection Reformed Church there. Soon after their arrival in Burkittsville, on Oct 14, 1906, Rev. Smith met with a group of 53 members of the Reformed Church in Brunswick to organize a church in that town. Charles became minister of that church as well as the one in Burkittsville. Funds were raised, and the new church was dedicated in 1910. At that time, Charles, Matilda, and 5-year old Lawrence were living on Main Street in Burkittsville. He served as minister to both churches until 1913.

A third child, Lois C. Smith, was born in Middletown in 1916, and their son Lawrence died 3 years later at the age of 15.

By 1920, Charles was retired, and he, Matilda, and 3-year old Lois were now living on Washington Street in Middletown. Charles died on March 14, 1923, at the age of 55, and was buried in Christ Reformed Cemetery in Middletown, MD.

When Lois got married, Matilda moved in with her and her husband, Joseph Dollahite, who was from Texas. He had come to Washington to work as a clerk for the federal government, and they made their home in Arlington, VA. While there, in 1938, they had a daughter, Mary Dollahite. They all eventually moved back to Joseph’s home state of Texas and established their home in Garland, TX.

Matilda died in Dallas, TX, in 1955. She is buried at Restland Memorial Park, Dallas Co., TX.

DESCENDANTS: Charles and Matilda’s daughter Loise Camelia Smith Dollahite died in 2000 (in Texas) and is buried at Memory Lawn Memorial Park in Martindale, Caldwell County, TX. Her husband Joseph Wylie Dollahite (1916-2004) and daughter Donna Guice (1946-2009) are buried in the same cemetery. NO CHIILDREN OF DONNA GUICE ARE LISTED, so it is assumed that there are no living descendants.

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