Charles Aurelius Smith
91st Governor of South Carolina
In office
January 14, 1915 – January 19, 1915
LieutenantVacant
Preceded byColeman Livingston Blease
Succeeded byRichard Irvine Manning III
67th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina
In office
January 17, 1911 – January 14, 1915
GovernorColeman Livingston Blease
Preceded byThomas Gordon McLeod
Succeeded byAndrew Bethea
Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives
from the Florence County district
In office
January 12, 1909 – January 10, 1911
Personal details
Born(1861-01-22)January 22, 1861
Hertford County, South Carolina, U.S.
DiedApril 1, 1916(1916-04-01) (aged 55)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseFannie L. Byrd
Alma materWake Forest University
ProfessionBusinessman, Banker

Charles Aurelius Smith (January 22, 1861 – April 1, 1916) was the 91st governor of South Carolina from January 14 to January 19, 1915. His term of five days stands as the shortest for any governor in South Carolina.

Biography

Born on January 22, 1861, in Hertford County, North Carolina, Smith attended Wake Forest University and graduated in 1882. He moved to Timmonsville, South Carolina, the following year and began pursuing banking and business interests, eventually becoming the president of several banks in South Carolina. In addition, Smith served as president of the South Carolina Baptist Association and was a trustee of Furman University and Greenville Women's College.[1][2]

Smith was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1908 and was elected the 67th Lieutenant Governor two years later in 1911. Governor Cole Blease resigned five days before the end of his second term on January 14, 1915. Smith succeeded to the governorship and only performed ceremonial functions during his five days in office.[1][3]

After serving as governor, Smith moved to Baltimore where he died on April 1, 1916. He was buried at Byrd Cemetery in Timmonsville and a large monument marks his grave.

He and his wife, Fannie L. Byrd, had nine children. Smith was a Baptist.[1]

His home at Timmonsville, the Smith-Cannon House, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Edgar, Walter, ed. (2006). The South Carolina Encyclopedia. University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 9781570035982.
  2. ^ "South Carolina Governor Charles A. Smith". National Governors Association. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007.
  3. ^ "South Carolina Governors – Charles Aurelius Smith, 1915". Sciway. February 11, 2021. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
Political offices Preceded byThomas G. McLeod Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina 1911–1915 Succeeded byAndrew Bethea Preceded byColeman L. Blease Governor of South Carolina 1915 Succeeded byRichard Irvine Manning III


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