Charles L. Smith was born in Richmond, Indiana, on July 20, 1862.
He married Augusta Henriette Gast on December 26, 1882, in Berrien, Michigan. She died on February 16, 1910.
Around 1904, he took over William Weiler’s saloon at 412 Adams Street, known as the Lake Erie Saloon. The 1913 directory shows that the business had been taken over by Robert Garwood. Charles had left La Porte by at least 1918, as records show he remarried that year in Manistee, Michigan, and he appears in the 1920 U.S. Census living in Manistee.
He died at the age of 75 on March 27, 1938, in Manistee, Michigan, and is buried in Patton Cemetery in La Porte, Indiana.
1904 & 1907 – Smith, Chas. (married to Augusta), sample room at 412 Adams Street and house the same.
1910– Smith Chas, saloon, 412 Adams, phone 341.
1913 – Not listed in the 1913. R. H. Garwood is listed at 412 Adams under saloons.
Bottle Type: Pint, hand-tooled blob top.
Embossing: CHAS. SMITH / LA PORTE, IND.
Glass Maker: ROOT (embossed on back heel), Root Glass Company, Terre Haute, IN.
Other Marks: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD (embossed on back)
Notes: Has a bail-wire lightning stopper. There is a quart of this bottle. Please submit a photo if you have one.
Photo Credit: Indiana Bottle Collectors
The Lake Erie Saloon was located at 412 Adams Street and operated by Charles Smith after he took it over from William Weiler. The building is now Shooters Bar & Grill as of 2025. The people in this undated photo are unidentified, but they are most likely Charles Smith and his wife.
