- William S. Smith
Infobox Congressman
name =William Stephens Smith
imagesize =
state =New York
district =17th
term_start =March 4 ,1813
term_end =March 3 ,1815
preceded =None; district established
succeeded =Westel Willoughby, Jr.
birth_date =November 8 ,1755
birth_place =Long Island ,New York
death_date =death date and age|1816|06|10|1755|11|08
death_place =Lebanon, New York
nationality =
party =Federalist
otherparty =
spouse =Abigail "Nabby" Adams Smith
relations =
children = William, John, Thomas, Caroline
residence =
alma_mater =
occupation =
profession =
net worth =
religion =
website =
footnotes =William Stephens Smith (
November 8 ,1755 –June 10 ,1816 ) was aUnited States Representative from New York. He married Abigail "Nabby" Adams the daughter of PresidentJohn Adams , and so was a brother-in-law of PresidentJohn Quincy Adams , and an uncle of Charles Francis Adams.Born on
Long Island , he graduated from theCollege of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1774, studied law for a short time.American Revolutionary War
He served in the Revolutionary Army as
aide-de-camp toGeneral John Sullivan in 1776. Smith fought in theBattle of Long Island , wounded atHarlem Heights , fought at theBattle of White Plains , promoted tolieutenant colonel at theBattle of Trenton as well as fighting at theBattle of Monmouth and Newport. He was on the staff ofGeneral Lafayette in 1780 and 1781, became anadjutant in the Corps ofLight Infantry then transferred to the staff ofGeorge Washington . [ [http://www.usmarshals.gov/history/firstmarshals/smith.htm First Generation of Marshals ] ]Years After the War
He was secretary of the
Legation at London in 1784. While there, he met and courtedJohn Adams ' daughter Abigail ("Nabby"), whom he married in 1786. [Nagel, Paul C. 1987. "The Adams women: Abigail and Louisa Adams, their sisters and daughters". New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195038746] He returned to America in 1788. Smith was appointed by President Washington to be the firstUnited States Marshal for the District of New York in 1789, and later supervisor of revenue. He was one of the originators of theSociety of the Cincinnati , and served as its president from 1795 to 1797. He was appointed by President John Adams surveyor of theport of New York in 1800. During this period the Smiths bought land in what was then the countryside outside of New York City, and planned to build an estate, which they calledMount Vernon , in honor ofGeorge Washington . They never lived there, but a carriage house on the property was later converted to a hotel and is now operated as theMount Vernon Hotel Museum .Colonel Smith raised private funds, procured weapons, and recruited
soldiers of fortune to fight the Spanish occupation ofVenezuela . This action was inspired by Smith's renewal of acquaintance withFrancisco de Miranda , whom Smith had first met when he wasJohn Adams ' secretary inLondon in 1783. On 2 February 1806, a force of filibusters, including Smith's son William Steuben, set sail on a chartered merchant vessel, the "Leander". The Spanish captured the ship and the mercenaries. Steuben later escaped.Colonel Smith was indicted in New York for violating the
Neutrality Act of 1794 and put on trial. Colonel Smith claimed his orders came fromU.S. President Thomas Jefferson andSecretary of State James Madison , who refused to appear in court. JudgeWilliam Patterson ruled that the President "cannot authorise a person to do what the law forbids." Colonel Smith stood trial and was found not guilty. [Ross, Shelley "Washington Babylon" Allison & Busby 1989]In 1807 Smith moved to
Lebanon, New York .Smith was elected as a Federalist to the Thirteenth Congress, holding office from
March 4 ,1813 toMarch 3 ,1815 . He presented credentials of his election to the Fourteenth Congress, but he did not qualify, and onDecember 13 ,1815 ,Westel Willoughby, Jr. successfully contested his election.Smith died in Smith Valley in the town of Lebanon in 1816. He is interned in the Lines Hill Cemetery, between Smyrna and Sherburne, New York.
External links
"General Miranda's Expedition" an 1860 account of the Leander affair http://www.fullbooks.com/Atlantic-Monthly-Vol-5-No-31-May-18603.html
Footnotes
References
*CongBio|S000638
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