Susie Smith (1891-1961) was born in Albemarle County to Ferrell Smith and Annie Lee Smith.

She started work as a chambermaid for a Charlottesville family and later became a housekeeper and cook for other families throughout the Charlottesville area.

In 1912, Smith married Maryland Brown. She died in 1961 and is buried in a family cemetery in Eastham, Virginia. Susie’s portrait illustrates a sense of style and self that did not rely on white middle-class values.