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 legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

and signed the

Continental Association The Continental Association, also known as the Articles of Association or simply the Association, was an agreement among the American colonies adopted by the First Continental Congress on October 20, 1774. It called for a trade boycott against Br ...

. Richard Smith was born in

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, ...

Province of New Jersey The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1783. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherland but came under English rule after ...

, 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, pp. 526, 527 Smith was educated under private teachers and in

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

schools and studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1762 and practiced in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

, 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 in the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York (state), New York; on the ea ...

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 The New Jersey Legislative Council was the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature under the New Jersey Constitution of 1776 until it was replaced by the New Jersey Senate under the Constitution of 1844. History The Legislative Council replace ...

(now the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate was established as 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, ...

) in 1776 and was elected treasurer of New Jersey, serving 1776 until he resigned on February 15, 1777. Smith moved to Laurens, New York, in 1790, and then to Philadelphia in 1799. He died near

Natchez, Mississippi Natchez ( ) is the county seat of and only city in Adams County, Mississippi, United States. Natchez has a total population of 14,520 (as of the 2020 census). Located on the Mississippi River across from Vidalia in Concordia Parish, Louisiana, ...

, and was interred in Natchez Cemetery.

Notes

References

* Gummere, Amelia Mott (1922). ''The journal and essays of John Woolman''. New York: The Macmillan Company. {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Richard Continental Congressmen from New Jersey 18th-century American politicians New Jersey lawyers Members of the New Jersey Legislative Council Pennsylvania lawyers People from Burlington, New Jersey 1735 births 1803 deaths State treasurers of New Jersey Signers of the Continental Association