Franklin Guest Smith

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Frank G. Smith
1892 right facing Head and shoulders photo of Brigadier General Franklin Guest Smith
From 1892's Officers of the Army and Navy (Regular) Who Served in the Civil War
Birth nameFranklin Guest Smith
Born(1840-02-16)February 16, 1840
Blossburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedOctober 7, 1912(1912-10-07) (aged 72)
Washington, D.C.
Buried
Arlington National Cemetery
AllegianceUnion
United States
Service/branchUnion Army (1861–1865)
United States Army (1865–1903)
Years of service1861–1903
RankBrigadier General
UnitU.S. Army Field Artillery Branch
Commands heldBattery I, 4th Artillery Regiment
Battery F, 4th Artillery Regiment
Artillery Siege Train, Fort Tampa, Florida
Artillery District of Portland, Maine
Battles/warsAmerican Civil War
American Indian Wars
Spanish–American War
Alma materRensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Spouse(s)Frances Louisa Dauchy (m. 1866–1878, her death)
Georgiana Dauchy (m. 1881–1912, his death)
Children4
RelationsWilliam Chamberlaine (son in law)
Other workSecretary and member, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Commission

Franklin Guest Smith (February 16, 1840 – October 7, 1912) was a career officer in the United States Army. A Union Army veteran of the American Civil War, Smith also served in the American Indian Wars and the Spanish–American War, and attained the rank of brigadier general.

A native of Blossburg, Pennsylvania, Smith studied civil engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, from which he graduated in 1859. After briefly working as private secretary for George B. McClellan, an executive with the Illinois Central Railroad and Ohio and Mississippi Railway, at the start of the American Civil War Smith followed McClellan into the Union Army and obtained a commission as a second lieutenant of Field Artillery. Smith served with the 4th Artillery Regiment, part of the Union's Army of the Cumberland. He commanded the 4th Artillery's Battery I, and took part in the Battle of Chickamauga and other engagements.

After the war, Smith continued to serve in the United States Army, including participation in the American Indian Wars and coastal artillery assignments on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. He was the longtime commander of Battery F, 4th Artillery, and in the 1890s began a long tenure as secretary and member of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Commission. During the Spanish–American War, Smith was assigned as artillery inspector for the army's Department of the South, then commanded a siege train of artillery at Fort Tampa, Florida, which was inactivated after the end of the war eliminated the need for Smith's command to deploy to Cuba.

After the war, Smith commanded the Artillery District of Portland, Maine. On August 3, 1903, Smith was promoted to brigadier general, and he retired on August 4. In retirement, Smith resided in Washington, D.C. He died in Washington on October 7, 1912, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Early life[edit]

Franklin G. Smith (often referred to as Frank Guest Smith or Frank G. Smith) was born near Blossburg, Pennsylvania, on February 16, 1840, the son of Dr. Franklin Rushton and Mary (Guest) Smith.[1][2] he attended the local schools, and was graduate of Bellefonte Academy.[3] In 1859, he graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a degree in civil engineering.[4][5] While in college, Smith became a member of the Theta Delta Chi fraternity.[6] After graduating, he began a career in railroad management as private secretary to George B. McClellan, who was then serving as vice president of the Illinois Central Railroad and president of the Ohio and Mississippi Railway.[4]

Civil War[edit]

When McClellan was commissioned a major general in the Union Army at the start of the American Civil War, Smith continued to serve as his secretary.[4] In August 1861, Smith received a commission as a second lieutenant in the 4th Artillery Regiment.[4] He continued to serve with the 4th Artillery, primarily as commander of Battery I during the regiment's assignment to the Army of the Cumberland, and took part in the fight at Snodgrass Hill during the Battle of Chickamauga.[7][8] During the war, Smith received brevet promotions to captain (December 31, 1862) and major (September 20, 1863) as commendations for his superior service.[2]

Continued career[edit]

Smith continued his army service after the Civil War, primarily in the western United States.[8] This service included American Indian Wars campaigns against the Cheyenne, Sioux, Bannock, and Apache peoples.[8] He received promotion to captain in 1867 and major in 1891.[2] Smith also served in several coastal artillery assignments, and was the longtime commander of Battery F, 4th Artillery.[9]

From 1893 to 1908, except for his Spanish–American War service in 1898, Smith was secretary and member of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Commission.[8] Smith was one of the lead planners of the Chattanooga National Cemetery, and a monument in his honor was erected there to commemorate his efforts.[4] Smith received promotion to lieutenant colonel in 1898.[4]

During the Spanish–American War, Smith served first as artillery inspector for the army's Department of the South.[4] He was subsequently appointed to command a siege train of 100 cannons that was organized in Tampa, Florida, for deployment to Havana, but the war ended before Smith's command could depart for Cuba.[8] After the war, he resumed his duties at Chickamauga and Chattanooga.[8]

In 1901, Smith was promoted to colonel.[2] From November 1902 until August 1903, Smith was commander of the Artillery District of Portland, Maine.[10] On August 3, 1903, he was promoted to brigadier general as the result of a federal law permitting still-serving Civil War veterans to be advanced one grade prior to retiring.[4][11] He retired from the army on August 4, but continued to serve at Chickamauga and Chattanooga.[8] He retired from this position in 1908.[8]

Later life[edit]

Smith was a member of the Military Service Institution of the United States, Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, United States Naval Institute, Army and Navy Club, and Reunion of the Society of the Army of the Cumberland.[2] In retirement, Smith was a resident of Washington, D.C.[2] He died in Washington on October 7, 1912.[12] Smith was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.[13]

Legacy[edit]

In 1921, the U.S. Army constructed Battery Smith, one of several coastal artillery positions on the island of Corregidor in Manila Bay, Philippines.[14] The site was named for Smith, and remained in operation until U.S. soldiers disabled it at the start of World War II.[14] After the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, the Japanese required U.S. prisoners of war to strip the usable parts of Battery Smith for use in rebuilding another coastal artillery emplacement, Battery Hearn.[14] The ruins of Battery Smith still exist and are a frequent destination for tourists and historians exploring Corregidor.[14]

Family[edit]

In 1866, Smith married Frances Louisa Dauchy (1840–1878) of Troy, New York.[1] In 1881 Smith married Georgiana Dauchy (1841–1933), the sister of his first wife.[1] With his first wife, Smith was the father of four children: Mary Jessie; Frances Maria; Margaret; and Charles Franklin.[1] Margaret Smith was the wife of Brigadier General William Chamberlaine.[15]

Smith's grandson Franklin Guest Smith (1908–2001) was a 1933 graduate of the United States Military Academy and attained the rank of brigadier general.[16][17][18] Smith's uncle Charles Eastwick Smith served as president of the Reading Railroad.[4] His first cousin Thomas Guilford Smith was a prominent engineer and corporate executive who was associated with the steel businesses of Andrew Carnegie.[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Ogden, Charles Smith (1898). The Quaker Ogdens in America. Philadelphia, PA: J. B. Lippincott. p. 143, 196 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Suter, J. L., ed. (1908). District of Columbia: Concise Biographies of Its Prominent and Representative Contemporary Citizens. Washington, D.C.: Potomac Press. p. 434 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Marquis, Albert Nelson, ed. (1908). Who's Who In America. Vol. 5. Chicago, IL: A. M. Marquis & Company. p. 1749 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Brown, John Jr.; Boyd, James, eds. (1922). History of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Vol. III. Chicago, IL: Lewis Publishing Company. p. 1458 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1867). Annual Register of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for the Academical Year 1867–68. Troy, NY: Wm. H. Young. pp. 46–47 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ Jones, Frank Lawrence, ed. (May 1889). "Our Graduates". The Shield. Elmira, NY: Elmira Advertiser Print. p. 70 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ Scott, Robert N. (1890). The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Vol. Series I, Volume XXX, Part I. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 431 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Reunion of the Society of the Army of the Cumberland (1914). Reunion of the Society of the Army of the Cumberland: Forty-first Reunion. Chattanooga, TN: MacGowan–Cooke Printing Company. p. 98 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ "Brieflets: Battery F, Fourth U.S. Artillery". Boston Evening Transcript. Boston, MA. August 15, 1882. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Army Orders: Colonel Franklin G. Smith". The Evening Star. Washington, DC. November 3, 1902. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Wheeler, Homer W. (1923). "The Frontier Trail". Times-Mirror Press. Los Angeles, CA. p. 16 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ "Brig. Gen. Franklin G. Smith". The New York Times. New York, NY. October 8, 1912. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Brig. Gen. F. G. Smith Dead". The Washington Post. Washington, DC. October 8, 1912. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ a b c d Whitman, Paul. "Battery Histories: Battery Smith". Corregidor.org. Bowen Hills, Queensland, Australia: Corregidor Then and Now. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  15. ^ United States Military Academy Association of Graduates (1925). Annual Report. Saginaw, MI: Seeman & Peters – via Google Books.
  16. ^ "Mrs. C. F. Smith Returns from Colorado Springs". Redlands Daily Facts. Redlands, CA. March 14, 1961. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Mrs. C. F. Smith at Wedding of Grandson". Redlands Daily Facts. Redlands, CA. June 3, 1965. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Franklin Guest Smith in Cullum's Register, Volumes VIII and IX". Penelope.uchicago.edu. Bill Thayer. 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2022.

External links[edit]

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