Smith County Road Workers - 1920s
Bill K. Kemp, grandson of Jeff Kemp provided the pictures and information on the Kemp family.
Jeff Kemp is pictured with his road working crew. Jeff is fourth from left. His son-in-law
Henry (Red) Smith may be the man fifth from left. None of the other men are known.
Evidently the crew lived on site and moved their camp as the road progressed.
The gentleman third from left appears to be sporting the "Jack of Diamonds".
He could probably deal a "mean" hand.
Smith County Road Workers - 1920s
Jeff Kemp, sitting on the wheel in the center of picture, is shown with his road workers.
None of the other gentlemen are known. The machine Jeff is sitting on is a road grader.
Notice all the wheels, levers and mechanisms for controlling the grader and blade. Unlike
present day graders, this one was not powered and relied on the dozer to pull it.
The year on the license plate of the model T is not legible.
Smith County Road Workers - 1920s
Pictured is a close-up of Jeff and the road workers.
Road Work
The above article was published in the Carthage Courier Nov 24, 1927. A transcription follows
Esq. R. J. Kemp, who is engaged in building the approaches to the new bridge across the
Cumberland at Gainesboro, spent Saturday night and Sunday with homefolks here. Work
on the road between this place and Red Boiling Springs has ended for the present except
for some work in the Steam Mill Hollow, near Gibbs' Cross Roads.