06/25/2025
Spotlight on the Mayors of the City of Duluth, Minnesota
Mayor Vespasian Smith - Third Mayor of Duluth:
Mayor of Duluth 1873 - 1874
From the Minnesota Digital Library, contributing information from the Duluth Public Library, Duluth, Minnesota:
"Dr. Vespasian Smith was the third mayor of Duluth. Born Oct. 21, 1818 in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, he earned a medical degree from Western Reserve College in 1851 and practiced in Ohio and Superior, Wisconsin before moving to Duluth. In 1860 he received a government appointment to serve as physician to the Indians at the Bayfield Agency. It is said that there were no votes opposing his first election to mayor, in 1873, except his own. He was re-elected the following year. The financial panic of 1873 and dire financial circumstances of Duluth itself made for difficult mayoral terms, but he was said to have been a man of great common sense who was well suited to lead during such times. He also served on the State Board of Health for twenty years. Dr. Smith died in Duluth on Oct. 11, 1897.".
And from the Find A Grave entry:
"Born to Rev. James Smith and Rebecca Emmett;
Studied medicine at Western Reserve College in Cleveland, OH and graduated with the class of 1851. Practiced medicine for several years in New Carlisle and Columbus, OH area and then moved to Superior, WI in 1857 and continued his practice in the pioneer setting. In 1860, he received a government appointment to serve as the physician for the Bayfield Indian Agency. He held this position for 8 years and was known to travel many miles in order to serve all his Indian patients. He never refused a call for aide. He also served as the register for the Land Office at Bayfield. He went on to Duluth, MN and here he was appointed the 2nd Collector of Customs at the port of Duluth for 9 years. He served two terms as mayor of Duluth. He was also elected the first president of the St. Louis County Medical Society and an appointed member of the State Board of Health for 20 years.
Summary from Commemorative Biography Record of Upper Lake Region, 1905".
And from the website "The Strangest Names in American Political History - Dedicated to American political figures with strange, odd, and unusual names! ©:
"Smith was a physician by trade, being born in Ohio on October 21, 1818. He studied medicine in his hometown of Mt. Vernon and graduated from the Western Reserve College in 1851 with a degree in medicine. Vespasian Smith spent the next twenty years practicing medicine throughout Ohio, Wisconsin, and eventually Duluth, Minnesota, where he and his family settled in 1870. He retired from his medical practice in 1877 and it was in Duluth that Smith began to venture into the field of politics. He was elected as Mayor of that city in 1873 and served two terms in office. In his later years, Smith was named as a member of the Minnesota State Board of Health. He died shortly before his 79th birthday on October 11, 1897, in his native city of Duluth. For those who may be wondering. . .(Smith was) named after the prominent Roman Emperor and military commander Vespasian (full name Titus Flavius Caesar Vespasianus Augustus), who ruled Rome from 69 to 79 A.D."
Posted by Andy Osterdahl at 10:40 AM on the The Strangest Names in Political History website.
Mayor Smith is buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in Duluth, Minnesota.
