Ben R. Smith, Jr.

Ben Smith, Jr.

Ben R. Smith Jr. of Filbert, South Carolina died on Friday, December 30. He is survived by his son, Benjamin Rush Smith III and his wife, Susan Blackburn Heath; his daughter, Beverly Smith Hutchison and her husband, Leonard (Len) Lafayette Hutchison III; three grandchildren, Elizabeth Coleman Hutchison, Leonard Lafayette Hutchison IV, and Sarah Jackson Blackburn Smith; and Alford and Pam Haselden, and their children, Alford Brooks Haselden, David Altman Haselden, and Laura Haselden Stoner. He was predeceased by his wife of 59 years, Merwyn Haselden Smith, and his parents, Benjamin Rush Smith and Jane Pursley Smith.
Ben graduated in 1951 from York High School and attended Clemson and Presbyterian College. He and Merwyn married in 1957 and enjoyed newlywed adventures in Europe, where Ben served in the Army. In 1958 they returned to Filbert, and the rest of his life Ben lived and worked within view of the homesite where he was born. He and Merwyn opened The Peach Tree in 1965 and helped to make Filbert a destination for lovers of fresh peaches, ice cream, and their special brand of Peach Tree hospitality. From his corner of The Peach Tree, “Mr. Ben” shared his ready smile, knowledge of peaches, and love of Clemson with all comers, regardless of their race, religion, or Gamecock loyalty. When peach season ended, Ben and Merwyn traveled to Clemson for football weekends, where they offered two generations of happy student tailgaters Ben’s country ham biscuits. Ben enjoyed quail season almost as much as peach season or football season, and he and Merwyn enjoyed travel their whole lives together. Wherever he went, whoever he met, Ben never left behind a stranger, though he did leave many tales and Peach Tree cards.
Ben loved his life and work, which were one, and the people in it. In addition to his family, Ben is survived and remembered by dear friends, among them Jim Bell, Framp Harper, Carter Martin, and Don Sadler, the remaining members of “The Magnificent Seven,” a group of 1951 York High graduates who have maintained for more than seventy years the friendships they made as ten-year-old boys. Ben was proud of these friendships and their durability, and he would gladly tell you a story about them. The depth, reach, and strength of these friendships typified the way Ben lived his life.
Ben was a member of Union Baptist Church, where the funeral will be held on Monday, January 2, at 2 p.m. Burial will follow at Lakeview Memory Gardens. Visitation will be held on Sunday, January 1 from 4 to 6 p.m. at Bratton Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Dee Norton Low Country Children’s Center or Union Baptist Church.
Bratton Funeral Home in York is serving the Smith family.