Smithfield Red Brick School is famous for its Chicken and Noodle dinners, along with home-made rolls and apple dumplings. The volunteers that help put this together work tirelessly to maintain the integrity of the local traditions, and the result is something not to be missed! This crew dishes out around 1000 meals per day during the drive.
In 1823 the first settler in this area was William Totten. “Totten Prairie” was his settlement, which was placed just east of where Smithfield now stands. Soon after, Dr. J.N Smith bought 40 acres of land nearby which includes the land that is now Smithfield. When the railroad was first being laid out, the shift engineer became very ill and Dr. Smith helped him recover. To show his gratitude, the engineer indicated he would route the railroad east of the Spoon River wherever Dr. Smith wanted it. It was routed through Smith’s 40 acres and a town was formed and named Smithfield in his honor in 1868.
Smithfield grew rapidly as a convenient location for goods and services for area farmers, and the railroad made it much easier to sell and transport grain. A grain elevator was built, as were blacksmith shops, hardware stores, hotels, doctor offices, and of course, a school. In 1900 a large fire destroyed many businesses north of the railroad tracks; at that time things were laid out as a town square oriented around the area where the water tower stands. Smithfield was largely rebuilt, but another large fire in the early 1930’s hit businesses south of the tracks. A fire department was organized and has done an excellent job protecting the community ever since.
The Red Brick School, built in 1917, eventually closed in 1990 and was then established as the Red Brick School Community Center, a project spearheaded by local artist Bill Swango. Bill’s work is still on display at the RBS, and his wonderful wife Shirley can share a wealth of information about this local legend and his amazing creations!
