1910 census
Eight-year-old William Stirling Smith appears with George W. Smith and wife Leanner. The relationship column calls him their grandson.
This establishes Stirling’s relationship to that household as recorded by the census.Maternal line · Anderson County, Tennessee
The Smith branch
This is the side of our family that leads through Pansy and back into the hollers around Anderson County. We have names and dates, yes. More interestingly, we have records that explain how one generation fits the next—and a few records still refusing to cooperate.
The line below follows Papa’s Smith ancestry. Nanny has her own place beside him, and her earlier Nelson generations will be added when we have records to follow.
Start with Mom, Pansy Lee Smith. Her parents were Fred Carter “Papa” Smith and Lorene Mae “Nanny” Nelson. Papa’s ancestry leads into Smith, Freels and McCoy research. Nanny’s Nelson ancestry is still waiting for its own careful record search.
See the family tree for a quick look at how everyone connects.
Papa’s Smith line
Six generations, one question at a time
01SandyFamily knowledge · living person
02Pansy Lee SmithFamily and vital records
03Fred Carter “Papa” SmithFamily and multiple records
04John Houston SmithVital records and census
05George W. SmithEvidence bridge below
06Levi SmithGeorge’s death certificate + 1860 household
Nanny’s Nelson line is here, awaiting deeper research. Artie Freels and Leanner McCoy enter Papa’s line as John Houston’s and George W.’s partners. Their own branches continue through the Freels and McCoy pages.
Featured research story
Stirling built the bridge
Three records, read together, tell us more than any one family tree could. Here is the reasoning, with each step left in view.
Delayed birth certificate
Stirling’s independent birth record names John Houston Smith and Arda Freels as his parents.
This connects the grandson in the census to John and Artie.John’s death certificate
John’s certificate names George Washington Smith and Leaner V. McCoy as his parents. Artie supplied the information.
This independently names the older couple. Dovie’s death certificate also names George W. and Lee Anna McCoy as parents.What the records support
Stirling is recorded as George and Leanner’s grandson and as John and Artie’s son. John’s death certificate then directly names George and Leaner as his parents. Together, these make the John Houston → George W. and Leanner link strongly supported.
Strongly supportedMeet the family
People behind the paper trail
1941–2025
Pansy Lee Smith
Sandy’s mother, a Batley Road childhood, and a family rooted in Anderson County.
Open profile →1915–2000 · working datesFred Carter “Papa” Smith
The birth-year puzzle, Nanny, and the house across from the cemetery.
Open profile →Nanny · family knowledgeLorene Mae Nelson Smith
Pansy’s mother and Papa’s wife. Her Nelson ancestry has a place here, and the research has yet to begin in earnest.
Open profile →1875–1940John Houston Smith
Railroad work, Artie, and the certificate that names his parents.
Open profile →1875–1947Arda “Artie” Freels
Her own Freels line and a child roster still under construction.
Open profile →1851–1918George W. Smith
Stirling’s grandfather and a documented route back to Levi and Martha.
Open profile →1854–1930 · working datesLee A. / “Leanner”
One woman, a remarkable number of record spellings, and an unresolved full name.
Open profile →The household
Artie’s children: an unfinished roster
The 1910 census reports 11 births and 8 children living at that point. Known later births mean the final total was greater, but the complete list and birth order remain unproved.
William StirlingDeweyJessieGeorgia “Georgie”Delphie / DelphaCliftonGus / “Guss”Frankie MarieFred CarterEdward E.
Names above are a conservative selection from the working report; their individual records vary. This is not a complete count of all 11 pre-1910 births or the eventual lifetime total.
Read Artie’s roster notes →Collateral stories
The people beside the direct line
Bonnie Gean Smith, 1941–1941
Bonnie’s marker lies between John and Artie at Freels Smith Cemetery. Those dates rule out her being one of their children counted in 1910. Harry Smith remembers her as Arthur Smith’s daughter; that is family oral history pending a documentary record, ideally her death certificate.
Family oral historyFrankie and Billy
Frankie Marie Smith Sharp’s obituary identifies family members. The 1950 census places a teenager recorded as Billy, “nephew,” in Fred and Lorene’s household. Family memory adds context about who raised him and his parentage; those parts stay labeled as oral history.
Documented Family oral historyGeorgie and Dovie
Vital records identify Georgia “Georgie” Smith Kirby and Dovie Guthrie Smith Williams within this family. Dovie’s death certificate describes severe burns from a skillet-grease accident. Both women deserve careful, respectful profiles when their records are assembled.
DocumentedPlaces
Batley Road & Freels Smith Cemetery
Pansy grew up across from the family cemetery in Anderson County, Tennessee. The place connects Smith and Freels generations, even while the cemetery’s name shifts a little among records and databases.
We will add a cemetery gallery when each image is identified and captioned. No unnamed grave photo gets attached to the wrong ancestor because it happened to be in the right folder.