Smith completed preparatory studies and graduated from Yale College in 1815, where he was a member of Brothers in Unity.

[4] In the 1848 presidential election, Smith became an early backer of the candidacy of Zachary Taylor, believing that the general would have the broadest appeal to voters outside of Connecticut and other Whig strongholds.

[3] In 1852, he supported Winfield Scott's campaign with pamphlets attacking the character and positions of Democrat Franklin Pierce.

[9] After the election, Smith began regularly criticizing his fellow Whigs and expressed futility for the party's prospects.

[3] Afterwards, he lived in Stamford, Connecticut, with his second wife, Mary Ann Dickinson Smith, while practicing law in New York City.

[2] In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Smith judge of the Court of Arbitration under the treaty of 1862 with Great Britain for the suppression of the slave trade where he served until 1870.

[11] This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress