Thomas Smith (May 1, 1799 – April 12, 1876) was an American tradesman who served three terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana from 1839 to 1841, and again from 1843 to 1847.

Biography

Smith was born in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. In 1818, he moved to Rising Sun, Indiana, where he learned the trade of

tanning Tanning may refer to: * Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather * Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin ** Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun ** Sunless tanning, application of a stain or d ...

. He then moved to Versailles, Indiana in 1821 and established a tanyard.

Political career

Smith eventually became a colonel in the state militia, and member of the

Indiana House of Representatives The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House memb ...

in 1829, 1830, and from 1833 to 1836. He also served in the state senate from 1836 to 1839. Smith was elected as a Democratic Representative for Indiana's 4th congressional district to the Twenty-Sixth Congress, which lasted from March 4, 1839 until March 3, 1841. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1840 to the

Twenty-seventh Congress The 27th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. between March 4, 1 ...

, but was elected in Indiana's 3rd congressional district to the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth Congresses (March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1847). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1846.

Later career and death

Smith was a delegate to the Indiana constitutional convention in 1850. Smith died in Versailles, Indiana aged 76 and was interred in Cliff Hill Cemetery. {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Thomas Democratic Party Indiana state senators Democratic Party members of the Indiana House of Representatives People from Fayette County, Pennsylvania 1799 births 1876 deaths Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana People from Rising Sun, Indiana Military personnel from Indiana 19th-century American politicians