Jan Christiaan Smuts was born on May 24, 1870, in Swartland, Cape, South Africa.

He was a South African statesman, military leader, and philosopher. He was educated at Victoria College, Stellenbosch and Christ's College, Cambridge. He was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1894 but returned home in 1895 and practiced law in Pretoria, the capital of the South African Republic. During the Second Boer War, Smuts commanded a force against the British with the rank of general. In 1902, he played a key role in negotiating the Treaty of Vereeniging, which ended the war and resulted in the annexation of the South African Republic and Orange Free State into the British Empire. Smuts played a leading role in the creation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, helping shape its constitution. He and Botha established the South African Party, with Botha becoming the union's first prime minister and Smuts holding multiple cabinet portfolios. However, when World War I broke out in 1914, Smuts became a staunch defender of the Allied cause. In 1918, he published a pamphlet titled “The League of Nations: A Practical Suggestion.” He played a leading role at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, advocating for the creation of the League of Nations and securing South African control over the former German South-West Africa. From 1919 to 1924, and from 1939 to 1948, he was Prime Minister of South Africa. In 1926, he published his only philosophical work, “Holism and Evolution.” In 1941, Smuts was appointed a field marshal of the British Army. In 1945, he represented South Africa in San Francisco at the drafting of the United Nations Charter. He was a leading guest at the 1947 wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. In 1948, he was elected Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, becoming the first person outside the United Kingdom to hold that position.

In 1897, he married Sybilla Margaret Krige (1870–1954). He died on September 11, 1950, in Irene, Transvaal, South Africa.

Charlotte Smithers Learmont was born on August 25, 1847, in Ireland.

Charlotte immigrated to Montreal with her family in 1847. Her father, Charles Francis Smithers, was an accountant with the Bank of British North America, providing a comfortable life for his wife and children. Charlotte attended Hannah Willard Lyman’s young ladies’ academy in Montreal. Her education was completed in New York City during 1862–63 when her father managed the bank’s agency there. In 1882, at the age of 37, Charlotte married widower Joseph Bowles Learmont (1839–1914), who had an 8-year-old son named Holton Hamilton. A native of Montreal, Learmont was a partner in Caverhill, Learmont and Company Limited, a large and profitable wholesale hardware business. As Learmont's wealth and status grew through successful business ventures and his marriage, he became involved in numerous charitable endeavours. He served as a director for several organizations that benefited the community, including the Montreal General Hospital. Charlotte and Joseph Learmont had no children, which allowed them freedom from many parental responsibilities. This, combined with their elevated social standing, enabled Charlotte to dedicate her time and financial resources to a variety of philanthropic activities. She was actively involved in Montreal's Young Women’s Christian Association, where she held positions as treasurer, vice-president, and president.

By the late 1890s, she and her husband had taken on significant roles in the Montreal branch of the Victorian Order of Nurses for Canada. In 1900, they both became incorporators of the Charity Organization Society and served on its board of directors. In 1904, Charlotte founded the Montreal branch of the Needlework Guild of Canada, which provided clothing for those in need. That same year, she was among the prominent citizens who helped secure the incorporation of the Parks and Playgrounds Association of Montreal. Her quest for a healthy and beautiful city led her to accept the vice-presidency of the City Improvement League, which was founded in 1909. She was also a member of the Themis Club, one of the first women's social clubs in Canada, as well as the Royal Montreal Golf Club. Learmont played a significant role in both the conceptualization and realization of two major exhibitions in Montreal: the Montreal Tuberculosis Exhibition in 1908 and the Child Welfare Exhibit in 1912.

With her husband, she attended Emmanuel Congregational Church, where he served as the superintendent of the Sunday school for two decades. After living on Mackay Street during the early years of their marriage, the couple commissioned the prominent Montreal architect Edward Maxwell to design a home for them in 1892. Completed in 1893–94 on McGregor Street (now Dr. Penfield Avenue), their home was notable for Joseph's library, which was considered one of the most sophisticated and diverse personal collections in Canada.

She died on July 2, 1934, in Montreal, Quebec.

Dr. William A. De Wolf Smith graduated in medicine from McGill in 1884 with a M.D.,C.M. degree. He was a surgeon at the B.C. Penitentiary, New Westminster, British Columbia.

Smith was a Montreal publisher.