News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1895-10-24
A NOTED WILL CASE.

III. b. Smiths 100000 Fortune Will Go to
the Widow He Disowned at Woodstock.
The noted will case of Hezekiah B.
Smith, which involved an estate of
100000, and which has been in four
different courts during the past eight
years, was concluded in the courts of
chancery at Trenton, N. j last week,
when the will was declared invalid
and the disowned widow and SONS
we're restored to their rig hts. Smith
left his fortune to, found a technical
school for young mechanics. The
widow, who will secure the bulk of
the 100000, is Mrs. Eveline Verona
Smith of Woodstock, this state.
The case is d remarkable one which
has attracted much attention. Smith
was a native of Woodstock and at
an early age showed inventive genius.
He owned small factory in Wood
stock and held several valuable pa
tents. He eloped from there with
Eveline V English, the daughter of a
farmer, and they were married in
Boston. All went well with the fam
lily for years. Smith moved his bust
ness to Lowell, Mass, when he was
about 40, leaving his wife and two
children in Woodstock, the elder son,
then ID, accompanying the father.
In Lowell Smith met Agnes Gilker-
son, then a pretty girl of Is. He
paid for her education and she was
graduated from a Philadelphia med
zeal school. Smith had in the mean
time secured from his wife in Wood
stock the letters in which he had
signed himself her husband and had
destroyed them. He finally aban-
doned his wife and children in Wood
stock, first putting money in the
bank there for Mrs. Smith, the de-
posit being in her maiden name,
which he hoped to induce he to sign
when drawing the money. The Of
ficers of the bank, pitying her for
lorn condition, paid the money with
out requiring a check.
After Miss Gilkerson had opened an
office as a PHYSICIAN in Lowell she was
cut by her acguaintances on account
of her relations with Smith. On this
account the couple finally left Lowell
and Smith established a town which
he named Smithville, near Mt. Holly,
N. j. He built large plant where
he manufactured machinery, the Star
bicycles and novelties. The arrange
mpnt of the factory and of Smiths
residence at Smthville show that he
was very eccentric. He ran for Con-
gress, but was defeated, tried again
and was elected. The story of his
desertion of his Vermont wife came
out as a campaign scandal Finally
his young paramour died. Smith was
inconsolabIe and INDUCED in de-
bauches. His death occurred in 1887.
Elton, the Oldest son, went with the
father to Smithville. He despised
Agnes Gilkerson and finally fed from
bis father because he could not brook
her presence. The son became a
sailor, then stevedore at Savan-
nah, and finally contractor con-
trolling large part of the literage
business of Savannah. From the
day of his disappearance he never
communicated with his father. At
the present time he is one of the
wealthiest men in Savannah. He
spends his summers at the old home
in Woodstock, where his mother and
another brother are still living.
When he heard of his fathers death
Elton Smith came to New Jersey and
began the fight which has just ended.
He declared that he would never
touch cent of his fathers money,
but that he proposed to vindicate
his mothers good name and to es-
tablish his own, his brothers and
sisters paternity.