Nathan Smith (January 8, 1770December 6, 1835) was a
United States senator
The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress.
Party affiliation
Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...
from
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
.
Biography
Nathan Smith was born in
Woodbury, Connecticut
Woodbury is a New England town, town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut, Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. The population was 9,72 ...
, son of Richard and Annis (Hurd) Smith; brother of
Nathaniel Smith and uncle of
Truman Smith. He received a modest education. He studied law with his brother and at
Litchfield Law School
The Litchfield Law School was a law school in Litchfield, Connecticut, that operated from 1774 to 1833. Litchfield was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietar ...
in 1790; was admitted to the
bar in 1792, and commenced the practice of his profession in
New Haven
New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...
. In 1808 Smith received an honorary master's from Yale. He was also an incorporator of Washington College, later known as
Trinity College in
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
.
Career
Smith was
prosecuting attorney
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...
for New Haven County from 1817 until his death in 1835. He was also a
delegate to the State
constitutional convention in 1818. In 1825, he was an unsuccessful candidate for governor of Connecticut, but was appointed
United States Attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...
for the district of Connecticut, serving in 1828 and 1829.
Elected as a
National Republican to the United States Senate, Smith served from March 4, 1833, until his death. He was 63 when he took his seat in the US Senate, one of the oldest serving members of that body and his only time in elected office.
Death
Smith died in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, on December 6, 1835 (age 65 years, 332 days). President Jackson and his Cabinet attended Smith's funeral in the Senate Chamber and there was also a large funeral service held in New Haven. He is interred at the
Grove Street Cemetery
Grove Street Cemetery or Grove Street Burial Ground is a cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut, that is surrounded by the Yale University campus. It was organized in 1796 as the New Haven Burying Ground and incorporated in October 1797 to replace th ...
,
New Haven
New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
. There is a cenotaph at Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.
See also
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References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Nathan
1770 births
1835 deaths
People from Woodbury, Connecticut
People from colonial Connecticut
Connecticut Federalists
National Republican Party United States senators from Connecticut
United States attorneys for the District of Connecticut
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Burials at Grove Street Cemetery
19th-century United States senators