| A rare image of Tobias Smyth |
Tobias Smyth, a local Methodist layman, made the first gift toward Emory & Henry's financial needs -- a sum of $500 contributed when the college was little more than a dream -- and he served on the Board of Trustees from 1836 until his death. Smyth originally became involved in the founding of Emory & Henry when the Rev. Creed Fulton stopped to return a borrowed horse after having attended the church's annual conference in Abingdon. Fulton had been named the conference agent to assist in founding a college, and, when Smyth learned about Fulton's mission, he became very enthused about the possibility of having the college located in his own community. Smyth recommended a tract of land to Fulton and agreed to make a financial commitment to the cause if that tract were chosen and it was. Smyth family descendants have remained in the area to this present day.
The Tobias Smyth Cabin
Smyth's farm was located about one mile north of the campus, and he was well-known for his generosity in providing bed, board and fresh horses for itinerant Methodist preachers who passed through the area.
The cabin itself had two rooms on the first floor and one large room on he second. The kitchen and dining room make up one room on the second floor and a small study is the second. Smyth and his family slept in the upstairs
Other Examples Of Colonial Houses In Southwest Virginia
One Room Cabins
Most early frontier cabins were one room. This room served as kitchen, dinning room, and living quarters
Two Rooms (Dogtrot or Saddlebags)
Once a family could, they would often add a second room to their cabin but built them several feet apart. Because fires were so prevailent in poorly ventilated chimney's, pioneers would build a kitchen separate from their living quarter to prevent fires from spreading.
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