Obituary for Margaret Hill Smith

San Juan Bautista Library

Margaret Hill SMITH
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Obituary
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Tuesday 10 April 1973 Palo Alto Times, p. 11
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    Mrs. Margaret Hill Smith, who with her late husband, J. Gilbert Smith, formerly owned the property where the Los Altos Civic Center now stands, died Monday at Stanford University Hospital. She was 95.

    Mrs. Smith had lived for many years at 51 South San Antonio Road, at the rear of the Civic Center site in a house her husband, an orchardist, built. The house and one-acre lot where it was located now revert to the city, which may convert the old home into a museum.

    The Smiths sold the [9-]acre civic center site to the city in 1954.

    Mrs. Smith was born in Oregon and lived in Oakland before her marriage.

    Her parents donated the land on which the San Antonio Club is located on North San Antonio Road. Mrs. Smith belonged to the club. She also belonged to the Foothill Congregational Church.

    [Survivors include] sister-in-law Florence Hill of Los Altos; nieces Florence Paul of Oakland and Betty Ward of San Francisco and nephew McCoy Hill of Sacramento.

    Friends may call at the Los Altos Chapel of Spangler Mortuary, San Antonio and Lyell until 12 noon Wednesday. Friends are invited to attend services Wednesday, April 11, 1973, at the Foothill Congregational church, 461 Orange Ave., Los Altos, under the direction of Spangler's Mortuary.

    Inurnment private.
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And here's a link to the J. Gilbert Smith House, which has indeed become a museum. I was particularly impressed with the old 30s-vintage toaster which was exactly like the one owned by my maternal grandmother. (She'd be busy talking and burn the toast. "It's a little dark." And she'd scrape off some of the surface charcoal before covering it with margarine -- which may explain why til recently I much preferred butter!)

Sat 18 Dec Route:San Juan Bautista - Santa Cruz - McAlpine Lake & [RV] Park