Iowa
Old Press
Maxwell Tribune
Maxwell, Story Co. Iowa
Thursday, February 19, 1903
page 3, column 6
FIRST WHITE CHILD. – E. W. Smithson Claims
the Distinction in Polk County and No One Disputes Him. (Special
Correspondence.)
E. W. Smithson, of Adel, was a visitor to Des Moines the other
day. He was accompanied by his wife, and they spent the day
calling on friends and shopping. Mr. Smithson claims the
distinction, which is not disputed, of being the first white
child born in Polk county. He was born April 1, 1845. His parents
lived in a small cabin at the forks of the Coon and Des Moines
rivers. His father, Eli Smithson, was employed by the government
in connection with the fort. His parents died when he was six
years of age. In 1846 his parents removed to Dallas county, and
he has lived there continuously ever since. The family was one of
the first three to emigrate to the west from Fort Des Moines, and
his and his grandfather’s family were among the first
settlers in Dallas county. Mr. and Mrs. Smithson have eight
children.
[contributed by K.S. & G.B., October 2005]