Parker H (Schmidt) Smith (1900 - 1972)

Born 9 Sep 1900 in Buffalo, Erie, New York

Ancestors

Husband of Loretta (Degenfelder) Smith — married 26 Nov 1923 in Buffalo, Erie, New York

Died 12 Aug 1972 at age 71 in Buffalo, Erie, New York

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Jillaine Smith [send private message]

Biography

1930:^[1] 269 Woodside (father Henry P Smith is “next door” at 265): [enumerated at same address as Charles G. Patton and family]:

Smith, Parker H., head... 29; m; age 23 at marriage; self and parents b NY... manager, fish market

Loretta, wife-h, 27; m.; age 20 at marriage; self and parents b NY

Parker H., son, 5, single; b NY

1940:^[2] 265 Woodside Avenue:

Smith, Henry P., head, 65,

--, Loretta, wife, 36

-- Parker Jr., son 15

-- Jack, son, 9

1941:^[3]

• Smith, Parker H (Loretta J) h265 Woodside av

He continued running the fish market until 1971 when it closed after 106 years. (He died the following year.)

In a 1971 newspaper article, Parker talks about giving it up due to illness:^[4]

"A family fish business, started here in 1865 by a German immigrant with a single push cart and a load of determination, has quietly gone out of business after passing through the hands of five generations. Because of illness, Parker Smith, Sr., 71, recently gave up the Smith Fish Co., which operated out of the Baltimore Fish & Oyster Co., 792 Genesee St. Until six years ago, the fish company was located at 330 Washington Market where it began 106 years ago as Fassnacht's Fish Market, a modest, open-air stand.

" 'The business was started by my great-grandmother, Mrs. Johann[es] Fassnacht,' Mr. Smith said. 'She and her husband eloped to this country from Altensteigh[sic], Germany , and were married by the captain of the boat on their way here.' [This beloved, and long-standing family legend was subsequently proved false; marriage records were found at St. John's church (Buffalo) in 1848.] Mr. Fassnacht made beer barrels, and after his death, his wife supported their four [there were three] children by 'buying fish on the foot of Commercial St. and selling them from a push cart on an empty lot on Washington St.,' Mr. Smith said.

"As the Washington market was built up, the push cart was replaced by a torchlight-heated stall. The business was run by Mr. Smith's grandmother and two great aunts before being taken over in 1905 by his father, Henry Smith, and renamed Smith Fish Co.

" 'My parents used to bring fish home on the street car in baskets for the people in our South Buffalo neighborhood, and my brothers and I would deliver it,' Mr. Smith recalls. 'I remember dragging the fish around on sleighs in the winter - a pound and a half for the family down the street and two pounds for the woman next door...' Mr. Smith began working full time at the fish company at age 21.

"Under his direction the business-- one of about 400 at the market -- grew into one which served up to 500 persons daily. 'We handled every variety of fish and sea foods you could think of,' he said. In the late 1950s the Washington Market trade began to lag, but not the Smith Fish Co. 'We were doing business until the last day of the market, when they pulled the roof from over our head,' Mr. Smith said.

" By the time the business was moved to the Baltimore Fish and Oyster Co., Mr. Smith was being helped by his son, Parker Smith, Jr., representing the fifth and last generation. And when the business moved from its long-time location, the customers remained loyal. 'When I gave it up about a month ago we still had about 35 good accounts,' the elder Mr. Smith said. "If this health thing didn't hit me, I'd still be in business-- you can be sure of that. It wasn't the nicest smelling business, but it did me right.It allowed me to deal with people, something I like to do. Some of the people I waited on 40 to 45 years ago still came out to Genesee St.,' he said. 'In fact, I had one old customer who called me Mr. Fassnacht.' "

Obituary:^[5]

"Funeral services for Parker H. Smith, 71, operator and owner of Smith Fish Co., a family business which lasted in Buffalo for 106 years, will be Monday [14 August 1972] at 2p.m. in the Loomis, Offer and Loomis Memorial Chapel, 1820 Seneca St. Mr. Smith, of 89 Brookside Dr., West Seneca, died Saturday (Aug. 12, 1972). Originally called Fassnacht's Fish Market, the family business was started by Mr. Smith's great-grandmother as a push-cart operation. After her death, the business was taken over by Mr. Smith's grandmother [Eliz. Fassnacht Schmidt] and aunts. [actually, I believe these would have been his great-aunts, Minnie and Emma?] In 1905, Mr. Smith's father, Henry Smith, took control of the business and renamed it Smith Fish Co. Mr. Smith took the reins of the business in 1921 and ran it until his retirement in 1971 because of ill health. The company, which sold fish on a retail and wholesale basis, also closed down with his retirement. Mr. Smith was a member of the Flying Senior Citizens. Burial will be in Ridge Lawn Cemetery, Cheektowaga. Mr. Smith is survived by his wife, Loretta [Degenfelter]; one son, John K. Smith; one daughter, Miss Susan A. Smith; a brother, Henry F. Smith and six grandchildren."

Children

1. Parker H. Smith Jr, b 22 Nov 1924; d 8 Mar 1965; m abt 1950 Jean Slagel, b 28 Feb 1932 Buffalo; d 2 May 2004, Olympia Washington. Two sons, two daughters, one of whom is living as of 2019. Parker's wife Jean left the family in the early 1960s; she subsequently married John A. Brush (not sure where), from whom she divorced in 1976 in Washington State.^[6]; per her obituary/death notice, she moved west to the Olympia (Washington State) peninsula, where she worked as a waitress and married in 15 May 1996 Oran K. Johnson [1915-2007] of Lacey.^[7]
2. Jack K. Smith, b 30 Jul 1930; d 12 Apr 1982; m 1 Sept 1948 Janet Morrison, b 18 Nov 1931, d 3 Dec 2001. Two children, living.
3. Susan Ann Smith, b 30 Sep 1944; d Aug 1992; m William Galus in August 1972; two sons, living.

Research Notes

Letter from Parker Smith 26 Jan 1970

89 Brookside Drive, West Seneca, New York 14220

Dear Mariam [Miriam Sess Smith],

Thanks so much for your ver interesting letter, and the chart you filled out, but I have some more dope on the family tree, that I think you might be interested in. The past few weeks my son Jack and I have compiled some more on on the old tree, trying to bring it up to date. To tell you the truth Mariam, when you start to get going on the next generations, its a never ending job, with all the grandchildren, ect., ect. There is an awful lot of them, when you dig in all the families. It reminds you of the Told Testament, this one begat, and begat, and begat. However Jack has a chart of the family tree, from the start, which I am mailing you good people. However all the dates and names in the various families, are not filled out, but after a little more research in the future, we may come up with more. But it seems to be a never ending job. It seems when you talk to this one and that one, everybody has a different slant of things.

I have spoke several times in the pst two weeks with one of the Erhardt girls, that is Ann. She is ninety two years old and very sharp for her age. She was J.P. [John Patrick Smith]'s first cousin. In other words, her grandfather and our Great GrantMother, were sister and brother. There are three of the Erhardt family still living here at this writing, and the youngest is around eight years old, outside of Bert, who had married Emil Leue, the meat man. Tell Little John, that Uncle Philip had two wives, the first Aunt Vera, and when she passed away, he married Fannie Evans, Three boys were from his first marriage, Leonard Norman, and Ira. One son was born to Fannie, William Evans Smith, and Ann Erhardt told me the other day, she just received a card from him. He is a retired Col. in the Army. Him I have never seen, but Aune Vera's boy I remember very well.

Now, as regards this matter of change of names from Schmidt to Smith. Up until 1916 there were only two in the family, that wrote their names Schmidt, which was the original name, as you will note on JP's birth certificate. Those two were our family, and grandma Schmidt. In fat, my diploma from school, and several insurances I have still bear the name Parker H. Schmidt. Well the whole family got together one night, and had a meeting, and after a hassel [sic] we were talked into changing it to Smith, that is grandma and us. Grandma had it changed legally, but I don't know whether my Dad did or not, but never-the-less we are all Smiths now.

I am enclosing some old copies, I had made, that you and John, and the kids may get a kick out of. I had several of them published in our local papers, as we have every Sunday, a page devoted to the old photo albums, and you may find them interesting. Along with all this stuff I am also sending to you, the complete records, taken from The Church records, from Germany, where the whole Fassnacht tribe originated. Have them with my compliments. As I have mentioned before, all the dates of birth and names of the present children, are blank, but it would take a Philadelphia laywer [sic] to get them all in order, there are so many. Jack and I compiled, this family tree, as close as we could come too it, but it gets t be a bigger job, with all the later generations. I can go back quite a few years, but can hardly keep up with the changing times. Up to present time, I know this fish business has been in our family, with my late son that helped me, in the fifth generation. I am enclosing one of my present order blanks, and you will note, that the business was established in the year 1865 with the Fassnachts, the first fish merchants. I don't know whether this a record or not but there it is. I collected quite a bit of the earlier data on the family, through the aid of Jack smith, that is John Martin Smith's son who was on a binge for a while, with this study.

But, as Jack is a rather erratic sort of a chap, as little John can tell you, he gave up after awhile, and I suppose he has gone back to beating his drums. His Dad is 85, and still going strong. In fact Mariam [sic], when I paid my respects to Betty when Emil Wollschalger [sic] passed away a few months ago, she told me, the old boy has a got a girl friend, that is John M. so watch out Mariam, these old Smiths has a lot of ideas, when they get old, so keep you eye on little Johnie, as the old saying goes, this Smith generation, mellow with old age, like good whiskey...

Well, I was as I said before, very happy to hear from you good people in California, so will close now. As this thing goes, along I will try and keep you informed, about later developments, as concerns the old family tree of the Fassnachts. I t seems that now and then this old tree comes to life, so if you or John have anymore to add to the present state of things let me know.

as ever.....

Parker

Sources

1. ↑ US Census: Ward 2, Buffalo, Erie, New York
2. ↑ 1940 US Census: Ward 2, Buffalo City, Erie, New York
3. ↑ 1941 Buffalo City Directory p 850
4. ↑ Pete Simon, "Family Business Ends After Five Generations," in Buffalo Evening News, 12/1/71, p. ??
5. ↑ Buffalo Evening News or Buffalo Times?
6. ↑ "Washington Divorce Index, 1969-2014," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLCQ-82RJ : 21 August 2017), John A Brush and Jean M Slagel, 19 Jan 1976; citing Divorce, Thurston, Washington, United States, from "Department of Health, Divorce Index, 1969-2014." Database. Washington State Archives - Digital Archives. https://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov : n.d. Citing Washington State Archives, Cheney.
7. ↑ "Washington Marriage Index, 1969-2014," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLHG-JH9T : 25 August 2017), Oran K Johnson and Jean M Slagel Brush, 15 May 1996; citing Marriage record, Thurston, Washington, United States, Washington State Archives, Olympia.