The Brown County Historical Society has applied to the Texas Historical Commission for a Texas Historical Marker for the grave of George Smith.

George Smith was one of the first Black men to move to Brown County. He was born into slavery in Virginia, around 1847.  In 1861 he escaped slavery and fled to Washington, D.C., where he lived during the Civil War, helping the U.S. Army to dig protective trenches around the capital city.

In 1881 Smith completed his enlistment in the Army, but this time stayed in Texas.  He moved to San Angelo and became an Elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME).  In 1885 he was sent to Brownwood to organize a church there.  Smith found that there was no school in Brownwood for Black children.  He worked with local civic leaders and started the school that later came to be known as the R.F. Hardin School.  Smith lived in Brownwood until his death in 1913, and is buried in Greenleaf Cemetery.

The Texas Historical Marker for George Smith will cost $2,300, and donations are needed to pay for the marker.  If you can help, make out a check to “Lappe Law Office Trust Account”, mark it for the George Smith Historical Marker, and mail to:  Lappe and Lappe Attorneys at Law, 404 N. Fisk, Brownwood, TX. 76801.  Lappe and Lappe will bundle the donations and make one check to the Texas Historical Society.