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Letters Home from World War I Soldiers: 1917 Dec 05
From Tyler Daily Courier-Times, December 5, 1917: Sergeant Milton Henry Writes to Mother From France Mrs. L.A. Henry, South Broadway, this city, has consented for the Courier-Times to print extracts from a letter written by her son, Milton, who is with the…
Letters Home from World War I Soldiers: 1917 May 31
Letters Home From Soldiers During World War I is going to be a regular weekly feature in celebration of the centennial of the United States entering World War I. From Tyler Daily Courier-Times, Thursday, May 31, 1917: Soldier Life At Camp Funston Interesting Letter …
James Wilkins’ Research Collection
Honoring James Wilkins and His Legacy I first met Mr. James Wilkins as a teenager at the old Tyler Civic Theatre in the round. He was a quiet gentleman, usually seated off to the side, sketching the actors for the program covers that would soon grace upcoming…
“Unmistakably Tyler II” | Magazine of the TEDC
Normally, we wouldn’t dedicate an entire blog post to a single item—but this find is just too special not to share. At an estate sale last year, I came across a 1991 magazine published by the Tyler Economic Development Council, Inc. Filled with colorful stories and…
Katie A. Stewart Collection, 2011.37.001
KAS ~ Manuscript | 5/20/2024 Category: Communication ArtifactSubcategory: Documentary ArtifactAccession #: 2011.37.001Received As: DonationReceived Date: 09/16/2011Source: Clark, Ron Credit Line: — Home Location:Smith County Historical Society → Archive/Reading Room →…
Oscar A. Winkfield
Laon, France – July 8, 1964 Airman Second Class Oscar A. Winkfield, son of Mrs. Opal J. Winkfield of 812 W. 28th St., Tyler, has been presented the U.S. Air Force Outstanding Unit Award at Laon Air Base, France. Airman Winkfield, a fire protection specialist (noted as…
Benjamin Goss: Donor of Universe Cemetery, Smith County, Texas
The following is additional information provided by Vicki Betts (vbetts@gower.net) after she and others worked tirelessly to have the Universe/University Cemetery designated as a Historic Texas Cemetery in July 2020. This information pertains to Benjamin Goss, the…
Universe/University Cemetery designated as a Historic Texas Cemetery
The following is a press release that was created by Vicki Betts after she and others worked diligently to have the Universe/University Cemetery designated as a Historic Texas Cemetery. Date: July 14, 2020 Press Release – For Immediate Release Contact:…
Sharing African American History
As a long-time member of the historical society, I have noticed that African American history remains one of the most underrepresented topics in our collection, even after all these years. I have a deep personal connection to this subject, and while I keep some items…
The Rose Queens of Tyler, Texas
As with many of my research projects, it started with a question of “Who was the first Rose Queen?” I assumed it would be one of established families of Tyler but I would have been wrong. It turns that the first Rose Queen was from Palestine, Texas, the…
State-Wide 2019 Genealogy Lock-In Program
In celebration of October, as Family History Month, the Smith County Historical Society will join the Genealogy Network of Texas (GNT) for a collaborative event on October 18, 2019 from 10 am – 8:30 pm. The GNT is a state-wide initiative to connect libraries…
Portraits of Louise Marsh, Frances Prestwood, Lovie Roberts and Ruth Hambrick, 1915
In my previous blog, Alma Woldert Spence Letter dated June 4 1915, I mentioned the portraits found in the 1915 Alcalde school annual. We have identified four out of the five as follows: Louise Marsh: Her senior picture is on page 35 with a different pose from…



