Thomas B. Smith (November 2, 1869 – April 17, 1949) was an American politician from Pennsylvania. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, he served as a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

and was the 82nd

Mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Jim Kenney. History The first mayor of Philadelphia, ...

from 1916 until 1920.

Biography

Smith was born November 2, 1868 in Philadelphia. Prior to this political career, he worked for the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

, ''

The Philadelphia Record ''The Philadelphia Record'' was a daily newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1877 until 1947. It became among the most circulated papers in the city and was at some points the circulation leader. History ''The Public Record'' ...

'' and the National Surety Co. of New York. He entered politics as the Republican Party’s chairman for the 28th Ward and won election to the Common Council, which was the lower house of the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

. In 1905, he won a seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, where he served one term. Later he secured appointments as postmaster for the city of Philadelphia and the Public Service Commissioner.

Mayor of Philadelphia

In 1915, he ran for mayor and defeated George Porter in the general election. During the 1917 primary election, Smith, who was allied with William Scott Vare’s political machine, supported Issac Deutsch in for the Republican nomination. Jim McNichol, who was part of the

Boies Penrose Boies Penrose (November 1, 1860 – December 31, 1921) was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After serving in both houses of the Pennsylvania legislature, he represented Pennsylvania in the United ...

machine, supported James Carey. Deutsch’s supporters brought a gang from New York who attacked Carey. During the melee, a police officer, George Eppley, was shot and killed. Much of the blame fell on Smith, who, as mayor, controlled the police, worked to ensure that the officers assigned to the district would support Vare’s candidate and harass supporters of Carey. The District Attorney, Samuel Rotan, who was a Penrose ally, indicted Mayor Smith for ‘conspiracy to commit murder’ as well as impeding a free and fair election. While he was acquitted of the charges, the cloud of suspicion hung over the mayor for the remainder of his term. Smith died April 17, 1949 in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Thomas B. 1869 births 1949 deaths Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Mayors of Philadelphia