Robert Burdett Smith (25 August 1837 – 2 July 1895) was a solicitor and politician in colonial

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, a member of the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House ...

and later the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. Along with the New South Wales Legislative As ...

. Born Robert Lloyd Smith, he was the twin son of John Lloyd Smith and his wife Mary Ann, ''née'' Salmon in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. Robert was educated at

William Timothy Cape William Timothy Cape (25 October 1806 – 4 June 1863) was an early school master in Sydney, Australia; several of the Premier of New South Wales, Premiers of New South Wales attended his school. Cape was born at Walworth, London, Walworth, S ...

's school under Dr D. A. McKean and J. Sheridan Moore. He changed his name to Robert Burdett Smith, and was admitted a solicitor of the

Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian States and territories of Australia, State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil law (common law), civil matters, and hears ...

in 1863, practicing in Sydney. He was at one time president of the

Australian Patriotic Association The Australian Patriotic Association is considered the first political party in Australia. It was formed in 1835 by a group of influential colonists of New South Wales which had among its leaders William Wentworth, the son of a convict woman an ...

, and was secretary to the committee of the Captain Cook Memorial Fund. He was a member of the

for the

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

and Macleay electorates from 1870 to 1889, when he was nominated to the

. Smith was a Commissioner for New South Wales at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition in 1886, and was Executive Commissioner for that colony at the Melbourne Centennial Exhibition of 1888. In 1890 he was created

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

. The town of Smithtown, New South Wales on the

Macleay River The Macleay River is a river that spans the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Formed by the confluence of the Gara River, Salisbury Waters and Bakers Creek, the Macleay River ...

, is named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Robert Burdett 1837 births 1895 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Australian solicitors 19th-century Australian politicians Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George