John Baptist Smith

Who was John Baptist Smith?

John Baptist Smith is believed by some to have provided the most lasting contribution made by either side during the American Civil War. In 1862 he invented and helped build a lantern system of naval signaling.

He was born September 19, 1843, at Hycotee in Caswell County, North Carolina, the son of Richard Ivy Smith and Mary Amis Goodwin Smith. At seventeen, he joined the Milton Blues to fight in the Civil War. Rapidly promoted and transferred to the Signal Corps, he soon was a sergeant in charge of a Confederate signaling station on the James River at Newport News, Virginia. While there he witnessed the naval battle between the Confederate ironclad Virginia when it destroyed the federal frigates Cumberland and Congress in the James River. When Norfolk was evacuated, Sgt. Smith and his signal corps were ordered to Petersburg, Virginia and given charge of the signal station on the Appomattox River to observe the movement of the enemy fleet and forces. While occupying an exposed position that was often under siege, he and his men held fast. Smith and his men also rendered valuable service during the seven day's fight around Richmond and the retreat of McClellan's army.