Nicholas Groesbeck Smith (June 20, 1881 – October 27, 1945) was a general authority

General authority

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...

 of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory

Utah Territory

The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....

, Smith was the son of LDS Church Apostle John Henry Smith

John Henry Smith

John Henry Smith was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

 and Josephine Groesbeck. At age three he had gone to England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 with his parents, where his father was serving as a church mission president

Mission president

Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...

.

Smith was baptized by his father on his eighth birthday. From 1902 to 1905 Smith served as a LDS Church missionary

Mormon missionary

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...

 in the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

. During part of the time he was on his mission he was president of the Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...

 District

District (LDS Church)

A district of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative unit composed of a number of congregations called branches. A district is a subdivision of a mission of the church and in many ways is analogous to a stake of the church. The leader of a district is the...

 of the church.

Smith was married to Florence Gay and was the father of four sons: Girard Gay, John Henry, Stanford Groesbeck, and Nicholas Groesbeck Jr.

In 1913, Smith was called by Church President Joseph F. Smith

Joseph F. Smith

Joseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

 to serve as president of the South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n Mission

Mission (LDS Church)

A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...

 of the church. He served in this capacity until 1921. He was succeeded in this position by J. Wyley Sessions

J. Wyley Sessions

James Wylie Sessions was the first Institute of Religion director in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was sent in 1926 by church president Heber J. Grant to head the Institute of Religion in Moscow, Idaho...

.

Some LDS Church sources state that Nicholas G. Smith served as Acting Presiding Patriarch of the LDS Church between 1932 and 1934. However, Smith was never sustained to this calling in a general conference

General conference (Mormonism)

In the Latter Day Saint movement, a general conference is a meeting for all members of the church for conducting general church business and instruction....

 of the LDS Church. It is unknown whether he was ordained or set apart

Setting apart

Setting apart is an ordinance or ritual in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints whereby a person is formally chosen and blessed to carry out a specific calling or responsibility in the church....

 to serve in this office or calling.

On 6 April 1941, Smith was called by LDS Church President Heber J. Grant

Heber J. Grant

Heber Jeddy Grant was the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle on October 16, 1882, on the same day as George Teasdale...

 to be one of the first five Assistants to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, a position which he held until his death in Salt Lake City from a coronary occlusion

Coronary occlusion

A coronary occlusion is the partial or complete obstruction of blood flow in a coronary artery. This condition may cause a heart attack.In some patients coronary occlusion causes only mild pain, tightness or vague discomfort which may be ignored: the myocardium is however damaged....

. He was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery

Salt Lake City Cemetery

thumb|The northern section of the cemetery at night, looking towards Salt Lake CityThe Salt Lake City Cemetery is in The Avenues neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah. Approximately 120,000 persons are buried in the cemetery. Many religious leaders and politicians, particularly many leaders of The...

.