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Pollak's book, Guide to the Makers
of American Wooden Planes, 4th Edition, states that Smith M. Ballou "learned
the trade of toolmaker with Ezekiel Smith and worked at that occupation
in Smithfield, R.I. and vicinity." We now know that Smith M. Ballou, the
oldest son of Maturin Ballou, was born in 1830 in Smithfield, R.I. Smith
and his two brothers and two sisters were raised on their father's large
homestead farm which fronted on the "Smithfield Turnpike." The Ballou farm
was about two miles from the village of Lonsdale where by 1849 Ezekiel
Smith had established a plane manufactory. 1 Smith Ballou
went to work for Ezekiel Smith and learned planemaking. Ballou may not
have served a formal apprenticeship under Ezekiel. He may simply have worked
as a factory hand at the plane manufactory. By the end of 1850, Ezekiel
Smith had left the village of Lonsdale in the Town of Smithfield. Smith
Ballou, twenty years old in 1850, took what he had learned from Ezekiel
Smith and applied it to making carpenters tools. We do not know where or
for how long Smith Ballou made the tools that bear his imprint. He is listed
as a "carpenter" in the 1865 R.I. Census, and perhaps by that date he had
turned to house carpentry for his work. For most of his life, he lived
on and farmed the 34 acres on the "Smithfield Turnpike" that he received
in 1861 in the division of his father's land. When he died in 1913 at the
age of 83, his occupation was given as "farmer." There are very few "S.
BALLOU planes that exist today. We would guess less than ten. We have examined
four of his planes and they are similar to what was being produced around
1850 by the more established planemakers."
Ira E. Smith, the son of the planemaker Ezekiel
Smith, in 1851 married Sarah Ballou, the sister of Smith Ballou. Ira and
Sarah may have met because of Smith Ballou working for Ezekiel Smith. Ira
E. Smith was also a planemaker, having learned from his father. Ira made
planes under the imprint of "I.E. SMITH."
1. Both the village of Lonsdale and the site of the Maturin Ballou
homestead farm on the "Smithfield Turnpike" are today part of the Town
of Lincoln. Lincoln was split off from the Town of Smithfield in 1871.
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