Francis Henney Smith

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For other persons named Francis Smith, see Francis Smith (disambiguation).

Francis Henney Smith (1812 - March 21, 1890) was an American military figure born in Lexington, Virginia. A graduate of the United States Military Academy, Class of 1833, he had a long career as a mathematician and a military man, serving as the first Superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) from 1839 to 1889: building it up before the Civil War — and rebuilding it after its near-total destruction during that war. He rose to the rank of Major General in the Confederate Army.