S. Rodmond Smith
Samuel Rodmond Smith (April 20, 1841 – September 30, 1912) was an American attorney, Civil War hero, and public servant who became the fifth mayor of Miami, Florida. He earned the Medal of Honor for bravery in the Civil War.
As a Union Army officer with the 4th Delaware Infantry, he received the Medal of Honor for crossing a partly frozen Rowanty Creek in Virginia under fire on February 5, 1865, to establish a ford. He swam the icy water with First Lieutenant David Eastburn Buckingham after their commander had been shot. Smith recalled icy water and a depth of more than six feet.
After the war, Smith worked for an insurance company, wrote about Judge Leonard Eugene Wales, and served for thirty years as Clerk of the U.S. Court for the District of Delaware. He also wrote about the Florida Everglades, owned a hotel, and in 1907 was among the early car owners in South Florida.
In Miami politics, he ran for mayor and took office in 1911. He faced opposition calling him a Yankee, but he was elected. He resigned due to illness and died in Miami soon after. He left donations to the YMCA, the Women's Club, and the Coconut Grove Library. Smith was an avid golfer and joined a Pinehurst club in 1905. He was born in Wilmington, Delaware, married to Sarah Elizabeth Ware Smith, and had a child named Bessie Wollaston Smith.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 14:34 (CET).