Bluegrass architect Frank L. Smith’s long career spanned the Victorian era into the late 1920s. He worked in various styles, including Queen Anne and Richardsonian, but favored a “free revival” style, blending historical elements with a modern ethos.
While some of Smith’s sturdy and aesthetically pleasing buildings remain, Urban Renewal in Lexington claimed several of his notable works.
Born in Newport, Maine in 1858 to Alonso and Mary Smart Smith, Smith married Massachusetts native Emma Hall in 1880. He began his career in Boston, practicing there with his brother Edwin (sometimes listed as Edward) W. Smith from 1887-1891.
During this time, he published The Cozy Home, a widely-distributed book arguing that affordable houses could and should also be well-considered and well-built. The Smith Brothers firm constructed practical middle-class homes like these across the Boston area.
In 1891 the brothers relocated to Lexington, quickly earning the trust of the community. Their most famous structure dates from 1893-4, the Richardsonian Romanesque masterpiece Central Christian Church. Other projects included several stately homes in the North Broadway corridor and the lovely Grace Baptist Church near Loudon Avenue. “Kenston” on West Main Street in Georgetown, too, was greatly admired in its day.
By 1906, Frank Lewis was the in-house architect for Combs Lumber, now a leading development firm with its own team of builders. Founder Thomas Combs proved such an influential figure that he served first as Lexington’s mayor and later as a state senator. As mayor, he appointed many of his company employees to key positions in the municipal government. In 1906, Combs appointed Frank L. Smith as a police commissioner.
As architect at Combs Lumber, Smith likely influenced many of the firm’s projects, though few are directly attributed to him. During his tenure there, Combs helped develop Mentelle Park (among other neighborhoods) but Smith’s role in the project is unknown. Maxwell Presbyterian Church, too, was built in this era and while it bears Smith’s style, the architect is unnamed.
Frank L. Smith was active in his adopted Central Kentucky home. The father of seven children, he and his wife were frequently listed in the society pages of the Lexington newspapers. A dedicated Mason, Smith authored several pamphlets on the history of various orders. He was also a charter member of Immanuel Baptist Church and designed their first permanent church building at High Street & Woodland Avenue.
At the end of his career, Smith had worked for Combs Lumber for over 25 years. A late project, 1636 Richmond Road, differs remarkably from his other work but remains imposing on the leafy thoroughfare.
Smith died in 1933 after a long illness. His wife had died several years earlier and he had been under the care of one of his daughters for some time. The Smiths rest at The Lexington Cemetery alongside most of their seven children.
Works attributed to Frank L. Smith or The Smith Brothers firm
- 144 N. Broadway (a former Masonic temple)
- 1636 Richmond Rd.
- 436 W. Second St.
- 460 N. Broadway
- Central Christian Church
- Charles Berryman Building (razed, located near the site of Phoenix Park)
- First permanent structure of Immanuel Baptist Church, Woodland & High Streets (razed)
- Grace Baptist Church, 811 Bryan Ave.
- Kinzea Stone House, “Kenston”, 406 W. Main St., Georgetown, Kentucky
- Second National Bank, 301 E. Main St. (razed, now the site of PNC)
