Frances Kitching (1918–2003) was a born and bred Smith Islander. Kitching had no idea that she would become a celebrity when she volunteered to cook for workers installing electric lines on the island in the early 1950s, but that experience led to her opening her inn and restaurant. A ham-and-cabbage dinner prepared for a travel writer cruising the Chesapeake Bay brought the first of many rave reviews. Over many years visitors and guests to Smith Island from far and wide praised Mrs. Kitching’s cuisine and urged her to share her recipes. Frances Kitching is the coauthor of her cookbook Mrs. Kitching’s Smith Island Cookbook.