Oliver H. Smith Explained

Oliver Hampton Smith
Office:Indiana House of Representatives
Term Start:1822
Term End:1824
Office1:Member of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana's 3rd district
Term Start1:March 4, 1827
Term End1:March 3, 1829
Predecessor1:John Test
Successor1:John Test
Office2:United States Senator
from Indiana
Predecessor2:William Hendricks
Successor2:Edward A. Hannegan
Term Start2:March 4, 1837
Term End2:March 3, 1843
Birth Date:23 October 1794
Birth Place:Upper Makefield Township, Pennsylvania
Death Place:Charlestown, Indiana
Profession:Lawyer
Party:Democratic-Republican
Whig

Oliver Hampton Smith (October 23, 1794March 19, 1859) was a United States representative and Senator from Indiana.

Early life

Born on Smith's Island, near Trenton, New Jersey, (is also believed to have been born at the Smith Family Farmstead in Upper Makefield Township, Pennsylvania[1]) he attended the common schools and moved west, eventually settling in Lawrenceburg, Indiana in 1818. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1820, commencing practice in Connersville. From 1822 to 1824 he was a member of the Indiana House of Representatives and was prosecuting attorney for the third judicial district, 1824–1825.

Politics

Smith was elected to the Twentieth Congress (March 4, 1827 - March 3, 1829) and was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1828; he was then elected as a Whig to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1837, to March 3, 1843. While in the Senate, he was chairman of the Committee on Engrossed Bills (Twenty-sixth Congress) and a member of the Committee on Public Lands (Twenty-seventh Congress). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection and moved to Indianapolis where he resumed the practice of law. He declined to be a candidate for Governor of Indiana in 1845 and engaged in the railroad business in Indianapolis. He died in that city in 1859; interment was in Crown Hill Cemetery.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania. CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Searchable database. Note: This includes Web site: National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Smith Family Farmstead. 2012-10-01. Lillee D. Zieran and Susan M. Zacher. September 1976.