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Dearest Jeanie... Highlights of the Wilkes - Smedberg Papers (1853-1913)

The Renwick Family

Jane Jeffrey Renwick, grandmother to both John Wilkes and Jane Smedberg

William Renwick was born in Manchester, England on April 26, 1769. He came to America in 1783 and was naturalized in 1786. He married Jane Jeffrey on August 15, 1791. She was born in Ruthwell, Scotland on May 29, 1774. Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote the poem, “A Blue-Eyed Lassie” in her honor. William Renwick was a merchant and died in Greenwich Village in 1808. Jane Jeffrey Renwick died on October 6, 1850. Their children:

April Wedding

The families agreed on April 20, 1854, in New York City for the wedding of John (Jack) Wilkes and Jane (Jeanie) Smedberg. Jack began the long journey from Charlotte in March. As the 20th grew alarmingly near, Jeanie counted on the latest communication technology of her time:

The Wilkes Family

Israel Wilkes (1722-1805) was the son of an English distiller, Israel Wilkes, and his wife Sarah Heaton Wilkes. His uncle was the famous British radical, John Wilkes. Israel, the younger, married Elizabeth DePonthieu (1727-1802), and the couple settled in New York City. They had three children including John de Ponthieu Wilkes (1755-1818) who married Mary Seton (1767-1801) in 1782. John was a successful banker and  became a prominent  fixture in New York society. John Wilkes and Mary Seton Wilkes had five children.

Honeymoon

From the “Autobiography of Mrs. John Wilkes (nee Jane Renwick Smedberg) Charlotte, NC 1903.” (typescript in Wilkes-Smedberg Papers, Robinson-Spangler Carolina Room):

The Renwick-Wilkes Connection

Jane Jeffrey Renwick  (pictured) and Lieutenant Charles Wilkes married on April 26, 1826. The couple  eventually settled in Washington, DC, where they raised their four children:

Jane Wilkes Statue

 In 2014, a small group of people gathered for the unveiling of a statue of Jane Renwick Smedberg Wilkes. Those attending the ceremony on the Little Sugar Creek Greenway knew they were there to honor her contribution in establishing Charlotte’s first two hospitals. Still, people ask, “Who was this woman?” To historian Dan Morrill, she was among the most important women in Charlotte history, second only to Bonnie Cone in her influence on the city. (Dan Morrill, Historic Charlotte (Charlotte, NC: Historic Charlotte, Inc., 2001) p.85) 

Jeanie's Early Years

With the death of her husband, Isabella Smedberg, seen here on the left with her two youngest children, Renwick (right) and Charlie (left), found her financial circumstances reduced. Nevertheless, she managed to maintain some social standing, continued to make social calls with either her older daughter Agnes or her youngest daughter Jeanie. In addition, she was able with the assistance of her brother, Professor James Renwick, to send four of her six sons to Columbia College (after 1896, “Columbia University”). All four graduated and entered into a profession. 

Jack at Saint Catherine's Mills Near Charlotte

 The Saint Catherine Mine was located just south of the Third Ward of Charlotte. It lay beyond the city limits when John Wilkes arrived in 1854. It corresponds to a location between the football stadium and I-277 today. Jack wrote the following words to accompany his sketch: There is a ground plan for you to study over & though not in a proper relative scale, the positions of the house is about correct the line going from e to b shows the bounds of the lawn towards the pond.

United States Exploring Expedition

(Oil painting of the ship U.S.S. Vincennes, attributed to Charles Wilkes) In 1838, Lieutenant Charles Wilkes led the first US expedition to Antarctica. The flora, fauna, maps and other findings from the Exploring Expedition (or Ex Ex, as it was known in the family) made up the first exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute – the building designed by his nephew, James Renwick, Jr.   

Dearest Jeanie

Dearest Jeanie… Highlights of the Wilkes - Smedberg Papers (1853-1913)