William Smith (1727-1803), Provost (65)

Elected to the revived American Philosophical Society.

Secretary of the revived APS (1768-1769) and of the unified APS (1769-1776, 1779-1781), vice-president of the unified APS (1776-1779, 1790-1795, 1796-1797)

William Smith (1727–14 May 1803) was an educator, Anglican clergyman, and prolific writer, and an active member and frequent officeholder of the American Philosophical Society, elected in 1768. Born and educated in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, he immigrated in 1651 to Long Island, New York, where he began a lifelong career in education. After his ordination in England, Smith returned to Philadelphia where he joined APS member Francis Alison at the Philadelphia Academy before working with Alison and Benjamin Franklin to establish the the College of Philadelphia, an institution that would name Smith as its first provost. He would also become the first president of George Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. Smith assisted with David Rittenhouse’s observations of the 1769 Transit of Venus and helped to edit the first volume of the APS Transactions. Over the course of his life he delivered countless sermons and speeches, including the APS’s inaugural oration in 1773, following his successful efforts to unify the APS with the American Society. Though he never held public office, Smith was active in the contentious debates of Pennsylvania governance, particularly via an ongoing print war with Franklin. Smith’s support of the proprietary party and Franklin’s for the Assembly led to years of acrimony between the two that soured what had previously been a productive relationship. Despite this feud, it was Smith who would later deliver Franklin’s eulogy. In the lead-up to the American Revolution, Smith urged reconciliation between England and the colonies, but his moderate-conservative position eventually proved untenable and he signed the state loyalty oath in 1777. He advocated for an American episcopate and took an active role in the Protestant Episcopal Church established after the Revolution. Later in life, he dedicated his time to land speculation, infrastructural improvements, and publishing his collected writings. (PI, ANB, DAB)