Arthur Riddick Smith, Jr.

ARTHUR R. SMITH JR.

Arthur Riddick Smith Jr., a longtime Valdosta resident who practiced architecture here for more than fifty years, died January 25, at age 91.

Smith was born on May 6, 1922, in Ashburn, Georgia, to Arthur R. Smith Sr. and Sammye Robinson Smith. He attended Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky, and continued his studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology until they were interrupted by World War II.

A U.S. Army Air Corps veteran of World War II, he was commissioned a second lieutenant upon graduation from the Pan American Airlines Navigation School, Class 44-2, at the University of Miami. He served with the 20th Air Force, 313th Wing, 505 Circle W Bomb Group based on Tinian in the Pacific Theater.

A B-29 squadron navigator for the 484th squadron, he flew 47 total missions and 23 accredited combat missions over Japan with the crew of the squadron lead plane, W32 Lazy Jane, navigating with celestial navigation 3200 round-trip miles per mission over the Pacific Ocean. The closing weeks of WWII brought a historic new "next-door neighbor" beside his plane's hardstand on runway 1, North Field, Tinian—R82 Enola Gay of the 509th Atomic Bomb Group.

He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement in leading a harrowing daylight raid on the Mitsubishi aircraft engine works at Nagoya, Japan.

After the war, Smith graduated with both a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Architecture degree from Georgia Institute of Technology. He was a Professional Engineer (structural) as well as a licensed architect. He began his professional career in Valdosta in 1948 under the late Lloyd Greer. In 1965 he opened his own practice, which became Smith and Smith, Architects, in 1977. He practiced architecture until the age of 86.

In 1952, Smith, his wife Helen, and two young children sailed for India to serve a five-year term as lay missionaries under the Methodist Board of Missions, where he designed churches, schools, and hospitals.

Smith was a faithful member of First United Methodist Church, which he and his wife joined in 1948. He was a longtime member of the Valdosta Rotary Club. A strong supporter of the Salvation Army, he organized its Christmas Kettle campaigns and served on its board of directors






He was an avid sportsman here and abroad. While in India, he shot four leopards and, in a near-death experience, a Bengal tiger. He was also a lifelong stamp collector and a year-round gardener, known for his roses in summer and his narcissus ("paper whites") in winter. A meticulous wood worker, he made many fine pieces for his home.

He is survived by his wife of sixty-five years, Helen King Smith, and four children—Gretchen Smith Mui (Lincoln) of Silver Spring, MD.; King Smith and Peter Smith, of Valdosta; and Mary Anna Smith, of New York City; and a grandson, Andrew Smith-Mui, of Silver Spring. Other survivors include three sisters—Sammye Smith Vore, of Stanton, CA, and Rosemary Smith Sageser (David B.) and Patsy Smith Arnold (Neil), both of Ft. Myer, FL—as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

Memorial services for Mr. Smith will be held at 4pm, Tuesday, January 28, 2014 at the First United Methodist Church with Rev. Bob Moon officiating. The family will receive friends on Monday from 6-8pm at the funeral home. The family request that memorials be made to the Salvation Army in Mr. Smith's memory. A private family burial will be held at Lakeview Cemetery in Sycamore, GA. Condolences to the family may be conveyed online at www.mclanecares.com. Carson McLane Funeral Home.


Funeral Home:
Carson McLane Funeral Home
2215 North Patterson Street
Valdosta, GA
US 31602