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Times co-founder Lessie Smithgall still sparkles at 105
Gainesville icon reflects on life of travel, art, philanthropy and sass
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Lessie Smithgall, who turns 105 today, founded The Times with husband Charles in 1947. - photo by Tracy Page
Lessie Smithgall thinks for a long moment, searching her brain for the right memory — not unlike carefully hunting through a jewelry box for just the right gold chain. When she pulls it out, it’s sparkling. “You know, it’s hard to look back on 105 years,” she says with a chuckle, sitting next to a crackling fireplace at her Gainesville home, where photos fill the hallway walls and artwork is hung high and low.