Hines, H. K. "An Illustrated History of the State of Oregon." Chicago: Lewis
Pub. Co. 1893.  p. 776.
 
DAVID SMITH

     Came to Oregon in 1851, and has been since identified with this great
growing State.  Mr. Smith was born in Marion county, Ohio, on the 17th of
November, 1827.  He is the son of David Smith, of Virginia, born in 1785.  His
ancestors came to the United States from Ireland previous to the Revolution and
settled in Virginia.  Mr. Smith's father was a soldier in the war of 1812.  He
married Elizabeth Hurd, of Maryland, the daughter of William and Margaret Hurd.
They were Quakers and early settlers of Maryland, where their ancestors
emigrated from England.  Ten children blessed the union, seven of whom are now
living.
     Mr. Smith was the sixth child.  In 1833 he, with his parents, removed to
Indiana, where he was raised to manhood.  In 1851, with five other young men, he
turned his face westward, and with horses and mules made the journey to Oregon.
This journey was a safe and enjoyable one, and they arrived in Oregon City in
September.  From there they went to Yreka, California, to the mines, where they
had only moderate success.  Mr. Smith then returned to Marion county, Oregon,
and purchased land and a sawmill, where he remained for five years, and then
sold out to Dr. Keil, who purchased it for a Dutch colony.  It is now Aurora.
Mr. Smith then removed to Yam Hill county, and purchasing a good farm remained
there twenty years.  His farm was near St. Jo, one and one half miles from La
Fayette.  In 1876 he went to Forest Grove and purchased a residence, where he
has since lived and where he intends to make his future home.
     Mr. Smith has dealt in real estate, and has been successful in his deals.
He is now the owner of some valuable farm land in Washington and Yam Hill
counties.  He has retired from active business and is enjoying the fruits of his
labors.
     In 1852 he married Miss Ann M. White, of Ohio, the daughter of Thomas and
Susan White, who walked across the plains to Oregon in 1852.  Mr. and Mrs. Smith
have two sons and they have adopted a daughter.  The eldest son, Milton W., is a
Portland lawyer; Henry Clay, the other son is a physician in Tacoma, and their
daughter is still at home with them.
     Mr. Smith has been a Republican since the formation of the party.  During
the time when secession was rife, he joined the Union League and did all he
could to keep Oregon from disgrace on that question.  He was elected assessor of
Yam Hill county, and also County Judge.  In both offices he showed ability, and
in 1886 he was elected to the State Legislature from Washington county.  In that
capacity he served his constituents faithfully and honorably.   In Forest Grove
he has been elected eight times by his fellow citizens to be a member of the
Town Council and also President of the Board of Trustees six times.  He has
always favored all city and county improvements, of the county.
     At one time he was in the nursery business, and he also spent a year of his
life in the mines in Idaho.  The wife he married forty years ago is still by his
side, the same faithful helpmate as she has ever been.  Mr. and Mrs. Smith are
persons who are representatives of the pioneers of Oregon.

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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in November 2005 by Diana Smith.
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above.