Richard Norton Smith (born October 2, 1953) is an American historian and author, specializing in
U.S. presidents
The president of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States, indirectly elected to a four-year term
Term may refer to:
* Terminology, or term, a noun or compound word used in a specific context, in pa ...
and other political figures. In the past, he worked as a freelance writer for ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', and worked with U.S. Senators
Edward Brooke
Edward William Brooke III (October 26, 1919 – January 3, 2015) was an American politician of the Republican Party, who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1967 until 1979. Prior to serving in the Senate, he served as th ...
and
Bob Dole.
Early life and education
Born in
Leominster, Massachusetts
Leominster ( ) is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 43,782 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Leominster i ...
, in 1953, Smith graduated magna cum laude from
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
in 1975 with a degree in government. Following graduation he worked as a White House intern and as a freelance writer for ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''.
He became a speech-writer for
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
Senator Edward Brooke, and then Senator Bob Dole, with whom he collaborated on numerous projects over the years.
Career
Smith's first major book, ''Thomas E. Dewey and His Times'', was a finalist for the 1983
Pulitzer Prize. He has also written ''An Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover'' (1984); ''The Harvard Century: The Making of a University to a Nation'' (1986); and ''Patriarch: George Washington and the New American Nation'' (1993). His 1997 biography of
Robert R. McCormick
Robert Rutherford "Colonel" McCormick (July 30, 1880 – April 1, 1955) was an American lawyer, businessman and anti-war activist.
A member of the McCormick family of Chicago, McCormick became a lawyer, Republican Chicago alderman, distinguish ...
, ''The Colonel: The Life and Legend of Robert R. McCormick'' received the
Goldsmith Book Prize
The Goldsmith Book Prize is a literary award for books published in the United States.
Description
The award is meant to recognize works that " mprovegovernment through an examination of the intersection between press, politics, and public policy. ...
awarded by
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
's
John F. Kennedy School of Government
The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
in 1998.
Between 1987 and 2001, Smith served as director of the
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library and burial place of Herbert Clark Hoover, the 31st president of the United States (1929–1933), located on the grounds of the Herbert Hoover National Historic S ...
in
West Branch, Iowa
West Branch is a city in Cedar County, Iowa, Cedar and Johnson County, Iowa, Johnson counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 2,509 as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020, census. It is the birthplace of the only American presiden ...
; the
Dwight D. Eisenhower Center in
Abilene, Kansas; the
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and the Reagan Center for Public Affairs in
Simi Valley, California
Simi Valley (; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''Shimiyi'') is a city in Simi Valley (valley), the valley of the same name in the southeast region of Ventura County, California, United States. Simi Valley is from Downtown Los Angeles, making it ...
; and the
Gerald R. Ford Museum and Library in
Grand Rapids and
Ann Arbor, Michigan.
In December 2001, Smith became director of the
Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics
The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, often shortened to the Dole Institute, is a nonpartisan political institution located at the University of Kansas and founded by the former U.S. Senator from Kansas and 1996 Republican presidential cand ...
at the
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...
in Lawrence. There he supervised construction of the Institute's permanent home and launched a Presidential Lecture Series and other programs. In October, 2003 he was appointed the first Executive Director of the
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum documents the life of the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, and the course of the American Civil War. Combining traditional scholarship with 21st-century showmanship techniques, the museum ...
, a four-building complex in
Springfield, Illinois.
In 2009, Smith was invited by the
US Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washin ...
to be one of two historians addressing it on the two-hundredth anniversary of
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
's birth. Earlier, he delivered a
eulogy
A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as ...
at
Gerald Ford's Michigan funeral, a role he repeated at
Betty Ford
Elizabeth Anne Ford (; formerly Warren; April 8, 1918 – July 8, 2011) was the first lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977, as the wife of President Gerald Ford. As first lady, she was active in social policy and set a precedent as a p ...
's request when she was buried beside her husband in 2011.
In 2014 Smith published ''On His Own Terms: A life of Nelson Rockefeller''. Smith took 14 years to write the book and said that he spent about $250,000 of his own money on the project.
[Brian Lamb. Q&A; C-SPAN. October 19, 2014.] In an interview with C-SPAN, he said that Random House provided an advance of $50,000 for the book.
Smith is currently at work on a biography of President Ford. In 2001 Mr. Smith create
Presidents and Patriots History Tours Twice a year he leads historical tours emphasizing American presidents and history seldom found in the text books.
Works
*''Thomas E. Dewey and His Times''. Simon & Schuster, 1982.
*''Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover''. High Plains Publishing, 1990.
*''Patriarch: George Washington and the New American Nation''. Houghton Mifflin, 1993. .
*''The Colonel: The Life and Legend of Robert R. McCormick''. Northwestern University Press, 2003. .
*''On His Own Terms: A Life of Nelson Rockefeller''. Random House Publishing Group, 2014. .
References
External links
''Richard Norton Smith - Official Website''*
''Presidents and Patriots Tours, by Richard Norton Smith - Official Website''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Richard Norton
1953 births
Living people
People from Leominster, Massachusetts
21st-century American historians
21st-century American male writers
Harvard University alumni
Historians from Massachusetts
American male non-fiction writers