Smith-McCrery Home

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna give it to you straight with a little color on the side. We're talkin' about the Smith-McCrery Home, right here in Navarro County. Built in 1880, this house started its life as the residence of Dr.

John R. Smith. Now, Dr.

Smith wasn't the kind of man who just sat on his porch. He served as mayor of Corsicana from 1883 until 1885, and in that stretch of time he kept himself busy. During his term of office, Smith organized the volunteer fire department.

Think about that for a second. Before Dr. Smith got to work, Corsicana was on its own if something caught flame.

He also helped Navarro County set up a poor farm at Petty's Chapel, where prisoners without money could work off their fines. Not a fancy solution, but a solution. The man was building a town out of practical pieces.

Then the years rolled on, as they do, and in 1898 the house changed hands. It was purchased by Mrs. A.

W. McCrery, a widow. And Mrs.

McCrery did not arrive quietly. She brought her ten daughters and her mother-in-law to live under that roof. Ten daughters and a mother-in-law.

That house, built for one doctor, suddenly had a whole world movin' through its hallways. The McCrery family held onto the place, generation to generation, and the house remained in their family all the way until 1967. Nearly ninety years of livin', first a mayor's ambition, then a widow's determination, all contained in one house on the Navarro County map.

Some houses just know how to hold a story.

What the marker says

Built in 1880, this house originally was the residence of Dr. John R. Smith, who served as the mayor of Corsicana from 1883 until 1885. During his term of office, Smith organized the volunteer fire department and helped Navarro County set up a poor farm at Petty's Chapel, where prisoners without money could work off their fines. In 1898 the home was purchased by Mrs. A. W. McCrery, a widow who brought her ten daughters and her mother-in-law to live here. The house remained in the McCrery family until 1967.