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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (July 28, 1957)
MR. SMITH, Take a Bow! .4- More than 1,500,000 Americans bear a star-spangled name that has played an important part in our nation's history. Oome people say he was a brave patriot; others claim he was a knave whose "reputation rests wholly on his own writings." Whichever estimate is correct, Capt. John Smith will get a lot of attention this year as the Jamestown (Va.) Festival celebrates the 350th anniversary of the founding of the first permanent English settlement in the United States. Smith was a leader of that group which came to Virginia in 1607. Indeed, without his guidance the settlers might well have perished. And today America has more than 1,500,000 namesakes of the controversial captain in fact. Smith is the coun try's most popular name! Jones doesn't even run a close second we have twice as many Smiths. The top ten names are Smith, Johnson, Brown, Williams, Miller, Jones, Davis, Anderson, Wilson, Taylor in that order. The most popular first name among men is John, so if you're a John Smith, you're probably used to the smirks of hotel clerks and bank tellers when they take a quick look at your signature. But pity the poor file clerks of America! After World War II, the Veterans Administra tion's files held cards for about 13,000 John Smiths and 8,000 of them didn't even have a middle initial. Incidentally, the Smiths could almost have fought their own private war against the Axis na tions; there were 54,180 of them in the Army and 21,476 in the Navy. As a matter of fact, the Smiths have distin guished themselves throughout America's history. James Smith, a friend of Washington, signed the Declaration of Independence for Pennsylvania and sacrificed his personal fortune for the Revolution. Another Pennsylvanian, Andrew Jackson Smith, commanded the Union cavalry in the Civil War battles of Vicksburg, Tupelo, and Nashville. The raid on Harper's Ferry, which preceded the Civil War, is believed to have been financed by Gen-it Smith, a New York abolitionist President Jefferson's Secretary of the Navy and Attorney General was Robert Smith. Later, as Madison's Secretary of State, Smith broke off re lations with Britain on the eve of the War of 1812. Secretary of the Interior under President Lincoln was Caleb Blood Smith. A Baptist minister, Samuel Francis Smith of Massachusetts, wrote more than 100 hymns, in cluding "My Country, Tis of Thee," which was originally composed for a Boston church meeting. In 1928, of course, the Democratic presidential candidate was Alfred E. Smith, "the happy war rior" who served four terms as governor of the state of New York. Remember the battles of Tarawa, Iwo J una, Sai- pan, and the Marshall Islands during World War II? They were directed by Marine Lt. Gen. Holland M. Smith. And let's not overlook some of our distinguished Smiths on the distaff side women like Sophia Smith of Massachusetts, who established Smith College, and Margaret Chase Smith, the charming U. S. Senator from Maine. H. Alexander Smith is Mrs. Smith's fellow Re publican in the Senate, and also in the Government service was Gen. Walter Bedell Smith, former ambassador to Moscow and director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Incidentally, if your name happens to be Smith the Vicar of London's historic St. Sepulchres Church would like to hear from you. His congre gation wants to install a stained-glass window in the church to honor Virginia's Capt John Smith who is buried beneath the south aisle. In the days before Smith helped found James town, he worshiped at St Sepulchre's and received the sacrament there before sailing for the New World. In 1631, he died "in a house under the shadow of the church towers." The vicar, G. H Salter, hopes every American named Smith will contribute to his namesake's memory, but your donation won't be refused even if your nne is Jones or Whiffenpoof! 11 Family IVi-rUy. Jxl v J. 1957 O
