Levi Lathrop Smith

Levi Lathrop Smith
BornMarch 6, year unknown[1]
New York State
DiedAugust 30, 1848[2]
Puget Sound near present-day Tumwater[3][4]
OccupationPioneer
Known forOriginal settler of present-day Olympia, Washington

Levi Lathrop Smith was an Oregon Territory original settler of present-day Olympia, Washington, arriving with Edmund Sylvester in 1846.[5] Smith died of drowning in 1848,[4] shortly after being elected to the Oregon Territorial Legislature, passing his property claim to Sylvester.[6]

Biography

Smith was born on March 6[1] in New York State. He was a Presbyterian divinity student.[7] He later emigrated to Wisconsin[8] where he became "attached to a half-caste girl, a catholic [sic]. To marry under these circumstances would be a violation of rule, and he made another to remove to Oregon."[9]

Smith and Sylvester arrived in Newmarket, Oregon[a] in October 1846. On October 20, Smith took claim to the land next to Budd Inlet, while Sylvester claimed Chambers Prairie.[10]

In 1847, Smith built the first cabin near the shore, naming the establishment Smithfield;[11] it was approximately 16 square feet (1.5 m2), located near present-day Capitol Way between State and Olympia Avenues.[1] Smith's cabin was modest: made of split cedar wood, with a chimneyed stone fireplace, one door, three windows, and single room partition. The surrounding 2 acres (8,100 m2) were enclosed for farming vegetables and raising livestock.[8]

On June 5, 1848, Smith was elected to the Oregon Territorial Legislature to represent Lewis County[1][12] but did not live to take his seat.[13]

On August 30, 1848,[2] Smith suffered an epileptic fit while canoeing near Newmarket[a] and drowned.[4][15] Epilepsy had previously affected his health.[3][9][16] Sylvester, as the surviving member of the partnership, abandoned his claim for Smith's land.[10] Smith's final journal entry is dated August 29, 1848.[1]

Works

  • Smith, Levi Lathrop (1952). Tanis, James Robert (ed.). "The Journal of Levi Lathrop Smith 1847-1848". The Pacific Northwest Quarterly. 43 (4). University of Washington: 277–301. ASIN B00KJ143I0. ISSN 0030-8803. JSTOR 40487847. OCLC 28197676. Digital facsimile (PDF), retrieved August 14, 2025 – via Olympia Historical Society

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b The settlers' name, Newmarket and sometimes New Market, later changed to Tumwater.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Smith, Levi Lathrop (2003) [1952]. Tannis, James Robert (ed.). "The Journal of Levi Lathrop Smith, 1847 – 1848 (excerpted)". Olympia Historical Society. Transcribed by Roger Easton. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Curry, George Law, ed. (November 4, 1848). "Nothing in Particular". Oregon Free Press. Oregon City, OR: Geo L. Curry: 2–3. OCLC 777483278 – via Historic Oregon Newspapers.
  3. ^ a b Curry, George Law, ed. (September 30, 1848). "Drowned". Oregon Free Press. Oregon City, OR: Geo L. Curry: 2. OCLC 777483278 – via Historic Oregon Newspapers.
  4. ^ a b c Murphy, John Miller (March 1909). Wilhelm, Honor L. (ed.). "Pioneer Days in Thurston County". The Coast. 17 (3). Seattle, Wash.: The Coast Pub. Co.: 145. OCLC 656634487 – via HathiTrust.
  5. ^ Crooks, Drew (March 12, 2013). "From Cheetwoot To Olympia: The Naming Of Washington State's Capital City". ThurstonTalk. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  6. ^ Writers' Program of the Work Progress Administration (1941). Washington, A Guide to the Evergreen State, Part 2 . Vol. Part 2. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort. p. 202. OCLC 591971187 – via Wikisource.
  7. ^ a b Hubert Howe Bancroft (1890), History of Washington, Idaho and Montana 1845-1889, The works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, vol. 31, San Francisco: History Company, pp. 15, 16 – via Internet Archive
  8. ^ a b Rathbun, John C. (1895). History of Thurston Co., Washington. Olympia, Washington: Publisher unknown. p. 11. OCLC 28212090 – via Internet Archive.
  9. ^ a b Evans, Elwood; Meany, Edmond S. (1893). The state of Washington. A brief history of the discovery, settlement and organization of Washington, the "Evergreen state," as well as a compilation of official statistics showing the material development of the state up to date. Tacoma: Tacoma Daily News press. p. 187. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  10. ^ Heffelfinger, C. H. (March 19, 1936). "The Empire Builder's Empire". Vol. 30, no. 12. Cashmere Valley Record. p. 8. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  11. ^ Legislative Committee Services (December 2008). "Chronological List of Oregon's Legislatures" (PDF). Oregon State Legislature. p. 17. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
  12. ^ Blankenship, Georgiana Mitchell (1916). Early history of Thurston County, Washington. p. 8. OCLC 1042927695 – via Internet Archive.
  13. ^ Blankenship, George E. (1923). Lights and shades of pioneer life on Puget Sound. Olympia, Wash.: [s.n.] p. 85. OCLC 1145766141.
  14. ^ Meany, Edmond S. (October 1920). "Origin of Washington Geographic Names". The Washington Historical Quarterly. 6 (4): 293. ISSN 0361-6223.
  15. ^ 1845-1945 Washington Centennial Commemorative Booklet. Olympia, Washington: Washington centennial association. 1831–1850s. pp. 21, 22. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
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