Dan Smith
1878 - 1934

Relationship to me:	Grandfather	Gen -2	Dan Smith in later life See more photos at bottom of page
Born:	13 Apr 1878, Bonar, Sutherland, Scotland
Died:	26 Jan 1934, Sutton (SW London)
Age	55
Father:	Alexander Smith (see notes below)	1839 - c1878
Mother:	Margaret née Young (see notes below)	b. c1844 - ????
Brothers:	James	b. c1864
	Simon	b. c1867
	Alex	b. c1869
	John	b. c1871
Sisters:	None
Married:	Mary Helena Nelson Richards (née Wake) m. 11th Oct 1905	1874 - 1969
Children:	Margaret Helena (m. Newman)	1907 - 1965
	Phyllis (m. Evans)	1910 - 1986

Dan Smith:

Dan Smith came from Black Isle in the North of Scotland. He was a pharmacist and businessman who owned "Smith and Campbell" pharmacy shops in Karachi and Lahore (then part of India). Amongst other things, the company supplied ice to the trains of the NW Railway.

Dan's birth was registered at Bonar, Sutherland where his birth date is given as 13 Apr 1878. His a mother is recorded as Margaret Smith née Young, married in Rosemarkie in 18th Sept 1867. His father's name is given as Alexander, who is described as a "salmon-fisher (deceased)". Bonar Bridge is some 30 miles north of the Black Isle where Dan Smith was reputed to have come from. Rosemarkie (where his parents were married) is on the East Coast of the Black Isle.

Daniel Smith again appears in the 1881 census where he is shown as the youngest of five sons of Margaret Smith, widow, aged 34, living at 18 High St, Union Tavern, Fortrose, Ross & Cromarty, Scotland, whose occupation was Innkeeper. Fortrose is just a mile south of Rosemarkie. No doubt Dan named his eldest daughter Margaret Helena after his mother.

The two photos (at right) are described in my mother's handwriting as being of Dan Smith and his father. I had assumed that they both taken at the same time, however this could not have been the case since Dan's father died before Dan's birth was registered.

Two other Dan Smiths were born in (or living in) the Ross and Cromarty area around the same time - at the time of the 1881 census: one (aged 2) was living in Rosemount Farm, Tain, and the other (aged 6) was living in Stornaway on the Isle of Lewis. Confirmation that my grandfather Dan Smith came from Fortrose came from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society who wrote to me in Oct 2007 to say: "Daniel Smith passed the minor examination and registered as a Chemist and Druggist on 18th April 1900, certificate number 13307. His address on registration is given as 18 High Street, Fortrose. He remains at this address until his name is removed from the register for non-payment of fees in 1906 which is not surprising as by then he had moved to India. His name does not appear again on the register so it would seem that he didn't return to work as a pharmacist on his return to England. No obituaries have been found in either the Pharmaceutical Journal or the Chemist & Druggist".

Dan and Helena ("Gran Smith") were married at the Church of Scotland in Quetta, India, on 11th October 1905. Their marriage certificate states Dan to have been a bachelor or "mature age" (no birth date given) and his residence at the time was Quetta, whereas Helena's appears to have been at Lovedale Nilgiris (presumably where her school was located). Dan's father's name is given as Alexander Smith.

After 15 years of life together in India, Dan and Helena returned to England in 1921 where they lived in what appears to have been quite a grand house called Mylesdown, 44 Mayfield Road, Sutton, Surrey. Presumably he had returned to England a wealthy man.

From my mother's account, Dan was an easy-going father to whom she would appeal against the rulings of her strict mother. My mother told me that Dan was a gambler and that he lost a lot of money, leaving his widow (Gran Smith) to manage with what funds she had ferreted away (which she did very successfully through the accumulation of well-chosen stocks and shares). I assumed that Dan must have "gambled" on the stock market and lost his money during the 1929 crash. However the probate certificate attached to his Will shows that the gross value of his estate was £11,732 which was not an insubstantial sum in those days though not a fortune. Perhaps he did lose a lot of money in "The Crash" and perhaps my grandmother gave him a hard time about it. She certainly let it be known that he turned to drink in his later years - perhaps to drown his sorrows.

Dan died of lobar pneumonia on 26 Jan 1934 in his house at Mylesdown (see death certificate). He was aged only 55 and only his step-son George Richards is recorded as being present at his death. He is buried in Sutton. In his Will, Dan left his estate to his wife Mary Helena Nelson Smith, save for two bequests - one to a cousin Louisa Whiting of £150 and the other to Denis Smith of 49 Seward Road, Hanwell of £100. It may be that Denis Smith was a relation, but being such a common name, there is no certainty about it.

It would be interesting to discover how Dan Smith advanced from being the youngest son of a deceased fisherman brought up in a pub in the North of Scotland, to become a pharmacist running his own business in India. His early life was probably an interesting one (as, no doubt) was his time in India.

Smith and Campbell Pharmacies, Karachi and Lahore, India.

Note: http://www.dawn.com/2003/09/21/fea.htm explains where Smith and Campbell's pharmacy was in Karachi: "By 1914, the time when the First World War started, the shops from the Regal Crossing to Charing Cross make interesting reading. To the left at Regal was Ranken & Co., civil and military tailors and outfitters. This tailoring concern had branches at Calcutta, Simla, Delhi, Rawalpindi, Lahore and Murree. Established in 1770 in Calcutta, it was among the first tailoring concerning "on Special Appointment" to the Company, and later on the governor-general. Then came the Civil & Military Gazette Press, followed by Cutler Palmer & Co., wine merchants. A few shops later came Smith and Campbell the Chemists and then was Richards & Co., drapers and tailors. Next door was Walter Locke and Co., gunsmiths and then was the shop of Mr. J.D. Bevan, the piano dealer."

Unfortunately the photos from my mother's collection of street scenes in what I assume to be Karachi, don't show any of the above names. However I include copies of these photos below in case anyone can recognise where they were taken. Most prominent amongst the store names is J. Bliss, Chemist which belonged to another Scots pharmacist by the name of Joseph Bliss. His great-grandson Jonathan contacted me in January 2006, and later in the year sent me his transcription of handwritten notes of a speech that Joseph Bliss presented to the Society of Pharmacists in Glasgow around 1909. The paper presents a fascinating picture of business and life in India at the turn of the century, and is no doubt a reasonably close description of Dan Smith's life there.

I'm sure the lady on the camel is my grandmother, Mary Helena Nelson (née Wake), but I don't know who her co-rider is.
It doesn't look like Dan Smith, and she looks too old for it to be her first husband George Richards.

Mounting or dismounting?

I cannot identify the photos below, other than the notes that I have included below each

J. Bliss, Chemist (centre) as referred to in the note above.
Next door on the right is Noorbhai Jaffergi & Sons, dealers in
Saddlery, Coach Iron-Mongery & Shoe Mercery

Same location as above - taken in front of J. Bliss Pharmacy, with Noorbhai Jafferji & Sons on right

I suspect this is a similar location but even using a high resolution scan I cannot make out the names of the shops

More photos of Dan Smith (a likeable-looking man to my mind)

With his family c.1920 - (step-son) Dick and Margaret behind; Phil and Mary Helena Nelson in front.

With an unidentified military-looking friend

Last modified - 5th March 2008 - information about Dan's Will and Probate certificate added.
Previously modified 6th Nov 2007 - confirmation of Dan's parents and link to copy of his death certificate added.
Previously modified 1st Oct 2007 - new information on Dan's possible parents added.
Previously modified 24th Sept 2007 - link to 1905 marriage certificate showing father to be Alexander Smith.
Previously modified 22nd July 2007 - reference added to Mylesdown, where Dan died.
Previously modified 2nd Jan 2007 - link added to Joseph Bliss's speech notes;
Page created: 28 Jun 2005