L. Windsor Smith – Life in Herkimer County, New York

Part of the ‘Smith family history’ series

Robert Windsor Smith’s father’s given name was Larned (a variant of Leonard) Windsor Smith. He seemed to more frequently go by L. Windsor Smith. Larned was born March 27th, 1802 in Fairfield, Herkimer County, New York.

Interestingly, Larned was a descendant of Roger Williams (1603-1683), a Puritan separatist and founder of Rhode Island who traveled from England to Massachusetts in 1631. I found references to Larned (and Robert and his descendants) in a published genealogy of Roger Williams as can be seen below.

Additionally, Robert’s nephew Felix Kay Parker submitted an application to the Sons of the American Revolution Society in 1956, which traces the family back to both Jeremiah Potter (1737-1813) who fought in the Revolutionary War as well as Roger Williams.

I was unable to learn much about Larned’s early life in Herkimer County, and I could not find him in the 1830 census. The Roger Williams genealogy refers to a first wife named Jane Eliza Crandall. The marriage seems to have resulted in no children, and this is the only reference I could find of Jane.

Larned had presumably been trained as an attorney, but I do not know what school or schools he attended. However, at least from the years 1833 to 1835 or so he was clearly working as a newspaper publisher and/or editor. He was specifically known to be the publisher of the Herkimer County Whig as well as some other publications. I found mention of him in a history of Herkimer County:

Apparently by 1835 Larned had decided to leave the newspaper business. A gem of a note in the July 3rd, 1835 New York Evening Post states the following:

THE RULING PASSION STRONG IN DEATH – The conductor of the “Herkimer County Whig,” a federal and panick journal published at Herkimer, announces in his last paper his intention to “fling by his pen,” and offers his establishment for sale “cheap.” He retires from the field in perfect disgust with “the people.” He has, he says, lost all “confidence in the political intelligence of the great mass of them,” and that “after a hard fought battle, and an overthrow which leaves all further combat hopeless, it is meet that the vanquished shake hands, and each wend his way.”

The Evening Post, New York – July 3rd, 1835 Page 2

Apparently, Larned was so discouraged with his failed attempts in the publishing world that he decided to make a significant change. Sometime between 1835 and 1836 Larned headed for Florida and eventually settled in Key West.