In 1912, realtor Carlin Geer Smith named his Du Ray Place tract in honor of his father and/or his brother. Du Ray Smith Sr. (1856-1913) was a real estate broker and title searcher in Oakland. He was also a troubled man. His wife Emily (née Scott) divorced him in 1890 on grounds of extreme cruelty – he did not contest her accusations – and in 1913, deeply in debt and having suffered a nervous breakdown, he stuck a gun in his mouth and fired. Du Ray Smith Jr. (1879-1968) lived a quieter life: he moved to New Kensington, PA, managed a coil spring factory, got married, and had at least one child, whom he named Emily after his poor mother.
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