Professors of Atlanta University: Frank W. Smith

Frank Webster Smith (b. June 27, 1854; d. February 11, 1943)

Massachusetts. White.
Education: Harvard University (B.A., A.M.), University of Nebraska (Ph.D.)
Occupation: principal, teacher

Frank W. Smith was born in the town of Lincoln, Massachusetts to Francis and Abigail Prescott (Baker) Smith in 1854. His father was a farmer. He was a student at Phillips Academy (in Andover), graduating in 1873. He then attended Harvard University. He graduated from Harvard in 1877.

After receiving his undergraduate degree, he decided to work as a teacher. He was hired by Atlanta University that September. He served as the instructor of Greek and Latin, although his duties occasionally included teaching in other subjects. In an 1880 report to a Harvard alumni publication, Frank wrote that his experience at the university "has been varied and valuable, and I have had a good opportunity to become somewhat acquainted with an interesting part of the county."

Frank returned to the North around 1880. By 1883, he was teaching history and classics at the State Normal School in Westfield, Massachusetts. During this time, he continued his own education. Harvard awarded him an A.M. degree in 1882, although this was likely an honorary degree rather than an earned degree. Two years later he took classes at Harvard's summer school and then he attended the Teachers College at Columbia University from 1899 to 1900. Four years later, he received a Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska. The degree was awarded for his dissertation "Studies in the evolution of the secondary school."

In 1896, Frank left his position at the State Normal School and moved out west. He settled in Grand Junction, Colorado and served as the superintendent of public schools. He moved to Salt Lake City, Utah and worked as a school principal and superintendent from 1900 to 1901. 

Frank returned to the northeast in 1905, after serving as an adjunct professor of education at the University of Nebraska from 1903 to 1905. He settled in the town of Paterson, New Jersey and served as principal of the City Normal School as well as the city examiner from 1905 to 1920. During this period, he wrote several articles and books on education, including Jesus - Teacher, The High School: A Study of Origins and Tendencies, and Historical Development of Secondary Education: From Prehistoric Times to the Christian Era (a version of his dissertation).

In1927, Frank retired to Winter Haven, Florida. He remained there until his death from heart problems in 1943.

Publications

1. "Studies in the evolution of the secondary school" (1904). ETD collection for University of Nebraska - Lincoln. AAIDP14152.

2. "The Normal School Ideal." Education. Vol. XXXIII, No. 1. September 1912.  19 - 26.

3. The High School: A Study of Origins and Tendencies (New York, New York; Sturgis & Walton Company, 1916).

4.  Jesus - Teacher: Principles of Education for both Public and Bible School Teachers (New York, New York; Sturgis & Walton Company, 1916). 

5. Historical Development of Secondary Education: From Prehistoric Times to the Christian Era (New York, New York; Sturgis & Walton Company, 1916). 

Sources

1. Year: 1860; Census Place: Lincoln, Middlesex, Massachusetts; Roll: M653_511; Page: 411; Family History Library Film: 803511

1. Year: 1910; Census Place: Paterson Ward 11, Passaic, New Jersey; Roll: T624_906; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 0156; FHL microfilm: 1374919

2. Year: 1920; Census Place: Paterson Ward 5, Passaic, New Jersey; Roll: T625_1064; Page: 18B; Enumeration District: 107

3. Year: 1930; Census Place: Winter Haven, Polk, Florida; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0014; FHL microfilm: 2340065

4. Year: 1940; Census Place: Polk, Florida; Roll: m-t0627-00613; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 53-39

5. Year: 1870; Census Place: Lincoln, Middlesex, Massachusetts; Roll: M593_626; Page: 352A

6. Harvard College: Class of 1877, Secretary's Report, No. II. (Cambridge, Mass; Riverside Press, 1880) 41-42.

7. Marquis, Albert Nelson. Who's Who in America: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living Men and Women of the United States: Vol. 12, 1922-1923. (Chicago, Illinois; A. N. Marquis & Company, 1923) 2849.