From butcher shop to in-laws: the story of Unverzagt & Smith.
Before refrigeration, before supermarkets, before chain groceries, Henderson depended on local butchers who knew livestock, knew their customers, and knew their craft. Among the most prominent were Henry C. Smith and Charles Unverzagt – partners in business, neighbors, and eventually family.
By 1880, the firm of Unverzagt & Smith was already being mentioned in the Henderson Semi-Weekly Reporter as leading butchers of the city. That December, the paper noted they had butchered three hundred “magnificent hogs” and would kill two hundred more. In another report, fifty head of fine hogs averaging 350 pounds were sold to the firm. These were not small operators – they were provisioning a growing river town.
Their shop at 220 Second Street became a fixture of downtown commerce. An 1907 advertisement lists them as dealers in fresh and salt meats, bacon, lard and sausage – “Terms Cash. Orders Promptly Filled.” For decades they supplied Henderson households, boarding houses, and businesses from that address.
The partnership began as business – but it became something deeper.
In October 1898, the Owensboro Messenger reported that Henry G. Smith, Jr., son of Henry Smith, eloped to Evansville on the Providence train to marry Emma Christine Unverzagt, daughter of Charles Unverzagt. The article noted that objections from the bride’s parents were said to be the cause of the elopement. Business partners became in-laws – and not without a little drama.
By the time a combined reunion of the Unverzagt and Smith families was held in 1906 at the Alves farm on the Corydon Pike, the two households were already permanently joined. The Henderson Morning Gleaner described older and younger generations gathered together for a day of merriment – not just neighbors, but one extended family.
In 1909, the long-running Unverzagt & Smith stand on Second Street was sold to the Quinn brothers, marking the end of an era for the firm that had served Henderson for nearly four decades. Though the storefront changed hands, the names of Smith and Unverzagt continued to appear in property records, society columns, and family gatherings for years afterward.
Charles Unverzagt, born in Brunswick, Germany, came to Henderson as a young man and spent thirty-six years in the meat business with Henry Smith. He died in May 1907 at his home on Clay Street and was remembered as one of Henderson’s pioneer business men.
Henry C. Smith, Sr., born in Germany in 1841, died June 22, 1916, at his home on South Main Street after nearly four decades in the meat trade. The Gleaner described him as a popular citizen whose passing would be widely felt.
Both men now rest in Fernwood Cemetery.
Stand on Second Street today and little remains to hint at the bustle of wagons, livestock deliveries, and early morning customers waiting for fresh cuts of pork and beef. But for nearly forty years, Unverzagt & Smith helped feed Henderson – and in doing so, helped shape the commercial and social fabric of the city.
