Wallace Smith Obituary

Dr. Wallace Calvin Smith
BEAUFORT - Dr. Wallace Calvin Smith(Calvin), BA Emory, MA & PhD UNC Chapel Hill, passed away August 6, 2020, in Beaufort, SC. He is survived by Merilyn, his wife of 56 years, two daughters Kymberley MacKenzie (Michael) of Bradenton, FL, and Aimee Smith of Chicago, IL, granddaughter Eilidh MacKenzie and brother Kyle D Smith Jr(Vivian) of Calhoun, Ga. Calvin was preceded in death by his parents Kyle and Sophie Smith of Pembroke and Calhoun, GA, and his sister, Mary Belle Strickland (Shelby d.) of Garden City, GA.
Dr. Smith was one of the founding members of the History Department at the University of South Carolina-Aiken. He also taught at Lagrange College and Jacksonville University. His specialty was American History with an emphasis on Colonial and Revolution History. Additionally, he taught Constitutional and Religious History in America for which he had received National Endowment for the Humanities Grants to attend and finish research at the University of Illinois and a summer research grant to Harvard University. He was published in the Georgia Historical Journal and he critiqued articals for the Journal of American History. As part of the Aiken-Orvieto sister-city exchange program, he delivered talks on Colonial American History both in Aiken, SC and Orvieto, Italy.
As one of his colleagues said, "he personified the phrase gentleman and scholar." Calvin, a Phi Beta Kappa and Stipe Scholar at Emory, loved learning and sharing his knowledge with any and all who asked a question. He would give a fair and unbiased view, not only in academic matters but in all topics except college basketball. Then it was unilaterally UNC Tar Heels.
Memorials can be made to: Parkinson's Foundation Beaufort Team Donor Services 200 SE 1st Street Miami, FL 33131 or the Dr. W.Calvin Smith Endowed Scholarship in History established at the University of South Carolina Aiken by sending their gifts to: Aiken Partnership (memo line Dr. W. Calvin Smith Endowed Scholarship),USC Aiken, Attn: Advancement Office 471 University Pkwy Aiken, SC 29801
Calvin(Dad, Poppi) wrote his own final words: "The curtain is down, the play has ended, it's time to go home."