Francis H. Smith October 18, 1812 - March 21 1890) was an American military figure who was born in
Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 234,403 as of the 2000 census, it is Virginia's second-largest incorporated city behind its eastern neighbor, Virginia Beach....
and died in
Lexington, VirginiaLexington is an independent city within the confines of Rockbridge County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 6,867 at the 2000 census. Lexington is about 55 minutes east of the West Virginia border and is about 50 miles north of Roanoke, Virginia. It was first settled in 1777.It...
.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Francis Henney Smith' Start a new discussion about 'Francis Henney Smith' Answer questions from other users |
Francis H. Smith October 18, 1812 - March 21 1890) was an American military figure who was born in
Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 234,403 as of the 2000 census, it is Virginia's second-largest incorporated city behind its eastern neighbor, Virginia Beach....
and died in
Lexington, VirginiaLexington is an independent city within the confines of Rockbridge County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 6,867 at the 2000 census. Lexington is about 55 minutes east of the West Virginia border and is about 50 miles north of Roanoke, Virginia. It was first settled in 1777.It...
.
He married on June 9 1835 at West Point,
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
Miss Sarah Henderson who was born on January 6 1812. They had seven children.
Francis H. Smith was a graduate of the
United States Military AcademyThe United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. Established in 1802, USMA is the oldest of the United States's five service academies. The military garrison at West Point was occupied in 1778 and played a key...
, Class of 1833. He rose to the rank of Major General in the
ConfederateThe Confederate States of America was a separatist political entity existing between 1861 to 1865, established by eleven southern slave states of the United States of America, each of which had previously declared their secession from the United States...
Army.
"Old Specs" as he was affectionately called by cadets, Smith had a long career as a mathematician and a military man, serving as the first Superintendent of the
Virginia Military InstituteThe Virginia Military Institute , located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state-supported military college and one of six senior military colleges in the United States. Unlike any other state military college in the United States, all VMI students are military cadets. VMI offers cadets a...
(VMI) from 1839 to 1889: building it up before the Civil War — and rebuilding it after its near-total destruction during that war.
External links