Martha Jo Smithson

Martha Jo Smithson, 85 of Cartersville, GA, passed on Friday, August 28, 2020 surrounded by her three girls.  Martha Jo was born on March 17, 1935 in Cherokee County, Alabama to the late Claude and Pauline Bridges of Lyerly, GA.  She and her husband, James spent all of their married life in Summerville, GA.  She loved that her birthday was on St. Patrick’s Day.

Martha Jo was married to her husband, James Roy Smithson and they would have been married 68 years on August 30, 2020.

In her early years she sewed many a glove at Georgia Glove to aid James in clothing her three daughters – she loved sewing clothes for them and frequently took her paycheck on Fridays to the Sarah Frances Shop in Lyerly, GA to buy them the latest styles.

Later in life she and James found a love of renovating houses to sell but her true love was creating flower gardens.  She had a beautiful display of flowers at her home on the Lyerly Highway and started completely over creating flower gardens at her new home in Cartersville four years ago.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her only brother, Mackey Bridges.

She is survived by her husband James Roy Smithson, her three daughters, Paula (Robert) Adams of Cartersville, Jamie (Donny) Taylor of Lyerly and Jerri Ann Smithson of Cumming.  She loved her only granddaughter, Lisa (Chuck) Reed and her only grandson, Landon (Lori) Adams of Cartersville.  She took delight in her five great-grandsons, Jackson, Cooper & Blake Adams, Adam & William Reed .  She is also survived by her three sisters, Claudia Wyatt, Juanita Baker and Sue Bennett, several nieces & nephews.

Graveside services will be held at Memorial Green Hills Memory Gardens in Summerville on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m..  Social distancing will be observed.

Active pallbearers are Robert Adams, Donny Taylor, Landon Adams, Chuck Reed and her five grandsons.