Richard Smith (March 22, 1735 – September 17, 1803) was a lawyer and politician who served in the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

and signed the

Continental Association The Continental Association, also known as the Articles of Association or simply the Association, was an agreement among the Thirteen Colonies, American colonies, adopted by the First Continental Congress, which met inside Carpenters' Hall in Phi ...

Personal life and education

Richard Smith was born in Burlington,

Province of New Jersey The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial history of the United States, Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1776. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherla ...

, to Richard Smith, a member of the

West Jersey West Jersey and East Jersey were two distinct parts of the Province of New Jersey. The political division existed for 28 years, between 1674 and 1702. Determination of an exact location for a border between West Jersey and East Jersey was often ...

Assembly, and Abigail Raper Smith.Gummere, Amelia Mott (1922). ''The journal and essays of John Woolman''. New York: The Macmillan Company. pp. 526, 527 Smith was educated under private teachers and in

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

schools and studied law. Smith moved to Laurens, New York, in 1790, and then to Philadelphia in 1799. He died September 17, 1803, near

Natchez, Mississippi Natchez ( ) is the only city in and the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 14,520 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Mississippi River across from Vidalia, Louisiana, Natchez was ...

, and was interred in Natchez Cemetery.

Career

Smith was admitted to the bar in 1762 and practiced in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, and later in Burlington. He was commissioned county clerk of Burlington on December 7, 1762. Smith was chosen as a

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

delegate to the Continental Congress from July 23, 1774, to June 12, 1776, when he resigned. He was a member of the New Jersey Legislative Council (now the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...

) in 1776 and was elected treasurer of New Jersey, serving 1776 until he resigned on February 15, 1777.

References

1735 births 1803 deaths People from Burlington, New Jersey 18th-century American lawyers 19th-century American lawyers Continental Congressmen from New Jersey Lawyers from Burlington County, New Jersey Members of the New Jersey Legislative Council Pennsylvania lawyers State treasurers of New Jersey Signers of the Continental Association {{NewJersey-politician-stub