The block of Center Street between the Fayetteville Square and College Avenue has been referred to as “Smoky Row” since at least the 1870s.
The name appears to have come about because of the high number of lawyers who smoked cigars and had offices on the street leading to the courthouse — both the 19th century courthouses at the center of the Square and the historic 20th century courthouse at the intersection of Center Street with College Avenue and who also smoked cigars while walking the street.
A second reference argued that the name came from the high number of wood-burning stoves used by offices, businesses and hotels along the block.
As a lawyer might say, the two potential sources of the name “Smokey Row” are not mutually exclusive.