United States / North Richland Hills, TX

Smithfield Church of Christ. Smithfield Church of Christ This congregation can trace its history to October 25, 1888, when J. E. and Mary E. Turner deeded two lots of land in the new railroad town of Smithfield to Christian Church trustees Uriah French, Lewis Jones and Thomas Garrett. A one-room building was constructed on the property for worship services. Known as the Smithfield Church of Christ after a doctrinal split in the early 1900s, the congregation purchased property on this site in 1956, across the street from its original location, and completed a new building in 1960. Programs of study, worship and outreach continue to keep the Smithfield Church of Christ a significant part of the community's heritage. (2002) #12845

6529 Smithfield Rd, North Richland Hills, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #00116

Alfred Madison Hightower. Alfred M. Hightower came to Smithfield from Illinois with his family in 1858 and became a rancher. When the debate over secession arose, Hightower opposed it, but when the Civil War began, he sided with the South. As a mounted rifleman in the Confederate Army, Hightower fought in many battles, including Elkhorn Tavern (Pea Ridge) in Arkansas, one of the biggest battles west of the Mississippi. After the War, he relocated to Kansas during the 1870s, but returned here in 1880 and continued ranching until his death. Nearby Hightower Street is named in his honor. (1991) #116

6600 Smithfield Rd., North Richland Hills, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #04966

Smithfield Baptist Church. This church was organized by 12 charter members in 1895; the Rev. G.W. Green served as first Pastor. A sanctuary was built here in 1902 on town lots donated by G.W. Gunter. The church supported area missions and organized a Youth Union, Sunday School, and Woman's Missionary Union. The congregation established Shady Grove Baptist Church in 1954. The church was renamed First Baptist Church of Smithfield in 1958. A new sanctuary was built in 1962 and several facilities were added over the years. The church serves the area with a variety of programs. #4966

7012 Main St., North Richland Hills, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #04968

Smithfield Masonic Lodge No. 455 A.F. & A.M.. The organizational meeting for this lodge was held on July 13, 1875. Originally known as the Grand Prairie Lodge, the fraternal organization held its meetings in the Zion Church until the first Lodge Building was constructed in 1876. In 1894 the structure was moved to the lot adjacent this site and was in use until 1981. The Lodge's membership has included some of the prominent early settlers of Tarrant County, including Eli Smith, for whom the Community of Smithfield (now part of North Richland Hills) was named. The title Smithfield Masonic Lodge was adopted in 1947. #4968

8007 Main St., North Richland Hills, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #04969

Smithfield Methodist Church. William and Mary Turner moved from Dallas County to a 300-acre farm near here in 1856. According to local tradition William soon built split log benches at his home for his neighbors' use as a site for study and worship. By year's end they had formed a Methodist Society called the Willow Springs Class. By 1861 the Rev. S.D. Sansom was serving as local elder. The community took the name Zion about 1873 and the church changed its name to Zion Methodist Church. In 1887, after Eli Smith and J.C. Brownfield gave land for a townsite named Smithfield, the church became Smithfield Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The congregation's first sanctuary, erected on land donated by Eli and Sally Smith in 1912, was replaced in 1935 with a structure built of masonry donated by descendants of William and Mary Turner. The congregation changed its name to Smithfield Methodist Church in 1939 and achieved sufficient membership by 1945 to retain its first full-time minister. The congregation, renamed Smithfield United Methodist Church in 1968, erected a new sanctuary here in 1974. The church continues to offer worship and outreach programs to the community and remains an important institution in northeast Tarrant County. #4969

6701 Smithfield Rd., North Richland Hills, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #04967

Smithfield Cemetery. Eli Smith (1848-79), for whose family the town of Smithfield is named, came from Missouri to Texas about 1859. In the early 1870s he donated part of his farm for the cemetery. The oldest marked grave is that of an infant, Mattie J. Brownfield, who died on Oct. 13, 1872. More than seventy-five graves, including that of Eli Smith, date from the 1870s. Pioneer physician Lilburn Howard Colley (b. 1843), for whom nearby Colleyville is named, was interred here in 1924. Numerous Civil War veterans, including men from both the Union and Confederate Armies, are also buried here. #4967

Smithfield Rd. & Main St., North Richland Hills, TX, United States