Francis Raphael Smith (September 25, 1911 – December 9, 1982) was a Democratic member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Formative years

Born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, all four of Smith's grandparents were

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrants. Smith graduated from St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia in 1933, and from the law department of

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...

in Philadelphia in 1938.

Career

Smith was employed as a bank examiner with the Pennsylvania State Banking Department in 1938 and 1939. He unsuccessfully sought election to one of Philadelphia County's allotted at-large seats in the

Pennsylvania State 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 ...

in 1938. Smith was elected as a Democrat to the 77th Congress, but was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1942. After his term in Congress, he became a

United States Marshal The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforc ...

for the eastern district of Pennsylvania, serving from January 29, 1943, until his resignation on April 30, 1945. He was then appointed collector of internal revenue at Philadelphia on May 1, 1945, and served in that capacity until 1952. He ran for Register of Wills in Philadelphia in 1953, but was unsuccessful. In 1955,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

George Leader appointed Smith State Insurance Commissioner. In December 1963, he was elected to succeed the recently deceased Congressman Bill Green as Chairman of the Philadelphia Democratic Party. He was also an elected member of the Board of Revision of Taxes of Philadelphia and member of Board of View of Philadelphia.

Death and interment

Smith died in

Somerton, Philadelphia Somerton is a neighborhood in the Far Northeast section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The neighborhood is bounded by Red Lion Road on the south, Roosevelt Boulevard on the east, East County Line Road and Poquessing Creek on the n ...

on December 9, 1982, and was interred at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in

Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania Cheltenham Township is a home rule township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Cheltenham's population density ranges from over 10,000 per square mile (25,900 per square kilometer) in rowhouses and high-rise apartments along Chel ...

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Francis R. 1911 births 1982 deaths American people of Irish descent Saint Joseph's University alumni Temple University Beasley School of Law alumni United States Marshals Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Politicians from Philadelphia 20th-century American legislators