John Smith (February 12, 1752 – August 12, 1816) was an American politician who served as a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from New York from 1804 to 1813. He previously was the U.S. representative for

New York's 1st congressional district The 1st congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in eastern Long Island. It includes the eastern two-thirds of Suffolk County, including most of Smithtown, as well as the ent ...

from 1800 to 1804. He was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party.

Early life

He was born on February 12, 1752 in Mastic Beach,

Province of New York The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the U ...

, then a part of British America. He was a son of New York State Senator William Smith (1720–1799) and Mary ( née Smith) Smith (1735–1758). He was a great-grandson of Chief Justice William "Tangier" Smith (1655–1705). His mother died on April 22, 1758, a week after the birth of a daughter Mary who died the next year."Mary Smith (1735–1758)"
at Long Island Surnames He lived at Manor St. George in Mastic Beach, Suffolk County, New York. In 1762, his father married Ruth Woodhull (1740–1822), a sister of Gen. Nathaniel Woodhull (1722–1776), and from that marriage John had six half-siblings.

Career

He was a member of the New York State Assembly, representing Suffolk County, in 1784–85, from 1787 to 1794, and from 1798 to 1800. He was elected to the

6th United States Congress The 6th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It met at Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and in Washington, D ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Jonathan N. Havens, and took his seat on February 27, 1800. He was re-elected to the 7th and 8th United States Congresses, and served until February 23, 1804, when he took his seat in the U.S. Senate. In February 1804, he was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of DeWitt Clinton, replacing the temporarily appointed John Armstrong. He was re-elected in

1807 Events January–March * January 7 – The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland issues an Order in Council prohibiting British ships from trading with France or its allies. * January 20 – The Sierra Leone Company, faced with ...

, and served until March 4, 1813.

Personal life

On October 16, 1776, Smith was married to Lydia Fanning (1760–1777) of Bellport, Long Island. Together, they were the parents of one son: * William Smith (1777–1857), who married Hannah Carman (1785–1861), daughter of Samuel Carman. Eight years after Lydia's death during childbirth in 1777, he remarried in 1785 to Elizabeth Platt (1765–1787), a daughter of Mary (née Van Wyck) Platt and Judge

Zephaniah Platt Zephaniah Platt (May 27, 1735 – September 12, 1807) was an American politician and lawyer, and founder of the U.S. town of Plattsburgh, New York. Early life Platt was born in Huntington, Province of New York, to Zephaniah Platt (1705-1778). ...

, a member of the

New York Provincial Congress The New York Provincial Congress (1775–1777) was a revolutionary provisional government formed by colonists in 1775, during the American Revolution, as a pro-American alternative to the more conservative New York General Assembly, and as a repla ...

. Among her siblings was U.S. Representative

Jonas Platt Jonas Platt (June 30, 1769 – February 22, 1834) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives. Early life Platt was born on June 30, 1769, in Poughkeepsie, Province of New Yor ...

and New York State Treasurer

Charles Z. Platt Charles Zephaniah Platt (July 22, 1773 – April 14, 1822) was an American politician. Life Platt was born on July 22, 1773, in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was one of twelve children born to Mary Van Wyck Platt (1743–1809) and Zephaniah Platt ...

. Elizabeth died in March 1787, just two years after their marriage. On October 21, 1792, he married for the third time to Elizabeth (née Woodhull) Nicholl (1762–1839). Elizabeth, the widow of Henry Nicholl (a grandson of William Nicoll), was a daughter of Nathaniel Woodhull and Ruth (née Floyd) Woodhull (sister of

William Floyd William Floyd (December 17, 1734 – August 4, 1821) was an American Founding Father, wealthy farmer, and political leader from New York. Floyd served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and was a signer of the Continental Association and ...

, a signer of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of th ...

). Together, they were the parents of four children: * Sarah Augusta Smith (1794–1877), who married New York City Comptroller

John L. Lawrence John L. Lawrence (October 2, 1785 – July 24, 1849) was an American lawyer, diplomat, and politician from New York. Early life John was born in New York City. He was the son of Jonathan Lawrence (1737–1812), a merchant and New York State Se ...

, a son of merchant Jonathan Lawrence. * Egbert Tangier Smith (1796–1879), who married Sarah Schenck, daughter of Gen.

William Cortenus Schenck William Cortenus Schenck (1773–1821) was a pioneer surveyor, militia general and legislator. Two of his sons were prominent military men. Youth William C. Schenck was born at Freehold, New Jersey, on January 11, 1773. His father was a Presbyte ...

and sister of Gen. Robert C. Schenck, U.S. Minister to Great Britain. * Charles Jeffrey Smith (1803–1876), who married Letitia Jane Suydam (1808–1872), a daughter of John Suydam of New York City. * Robert Smith (d. 1862), a merchant who died unmarried. Smith died on August 12, 1816 in Mastic on Long Island. He was interred in the family cemetery on Smiths Point, New York. His widow died on September 14, 1839.

Descendants

Through his son William, he was a grandfather of four, including: Lydia Smith (1810–1896), who married David Gelston Floyd (1802–1893) of Greenport; and Egbert Tangiers Smith (1822–1889), who married Annie Marie Robinson (daughter of Joseph Robinson). Through his daughter Sarah, he was a grandfather of eleven, including Abraham Riker Lawrence, a Justice of the Supreme Court of New York.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, John 1752 births 1816 deaths People from Mastic Beach, New York People of the Province of New York American people of English descent Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Democratic-Republican Party United States senators from New York (state) Members of the New York State Assembly