David Paige Smith (October 1, 1830 – December 26, 1880) was a professor at

Yale Medical School The Yale School of Medicine is the graduate medical school at Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was founded in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College and formally opened in 1813. The primary te ...

and is the namesake of the David Paige Smith professorship at the school. Smith, eldest son of James M. Smith, M. D., and grandson of Nathan Smith, M.D., the first Professor of Theory and Practice in the Yale Medical Institution, was born in Westfield, Mass, October 1, 1830. His father moved to

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, Md., in 1838, and returned to

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, Mass., about 1841, from which place the son entered

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

, where he graduated in 1851. Smith studied medicine in the

Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

, Philadelphia, and also with his father, who was killed in the railroad disaster at Norwalk, Conn., in 1853. Upon graduation at Philadelphia, in March, 1854, he succeeded to his father's practice in Springfield, and was married the same year to Eunice S. Brewer. In 1860 he went to Europe and spent a year in medical and surgical study. On his return he entered the

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as Surgeon of the 18th Massachusetts Infantry, but was soon made Medical Director of General

George H. Thomas George Henry Thomas (July 31, 1816March 28, 1870) was an American general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and one of the principal commanders in the Western Theater. Thomas served in the Mexican–American War and later chose ...

' division. After the Peninsula campaign, he was placed in charge of the hospital at Fairfax Seminary, near

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

, Va., and while there rendered most valuable and conspicuous service, and laid the foundation for his subsequent eminence and success in difficult surgical operations. After resuming practice in Springfield at the close of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, he rapidly advanced in professional standing, and when in 1873 he was elected to the chair originally held by his grandfather in the Yale Medical School, he was the acknowledged head of his profession in the region of his residence. In 1877 he was transferred to the more congenial chair of surgery, and his services were of great value to the school, though he continued to reside in Springfield until his death. His laborious practice and the intense energy with which he gave himself to it, had unfitted him for resisting disease, and death resulted from a chill contracted in a drive to a neighboring town and neglected until too late. He died in Springfield, December 26, 1880, at the age of 50 years. His wife survived him. Their only child, a son, died in 1873. By his will his professional library and his valuable collections of medical and surgical instruments were given to Yale College, and the proceeds of two-fifths of his estate were used for the endowment of the chair of the Theory and Practice of Medicine.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, david paige 1830 births 1880 deaths People from Westfield, Massachusetts Yale College alumni Yale School of Medicine faculty Jefferson Medical College alumni Union Army surgeons Military personnel from Massachusetts