[1][citation needed] He was named after Jesse Nathaniel Smith and Addison Pratt, his great-grandfather.

[1][2] Udall helped organize an Arizona National Guard company during World War II.

He was the chief of the Army Internal Security Division's review section in Washington, D.C.[1] In 1945, he continued his law practice in Safford.

[1] He then served as president of the Southern California mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

[1] In 1960, Governor Paul Fannin appointed him to succeed his brother Levi on the Arizona Supreme Court.