John M. Smith (politician, born 1872)

{{Short description|American businessman and politician}}

{{infobox officeholder

|name=John M. Smith

|image=John M. Smith (8253035977) (1).jpg

|caption=Smith {{circa|1940}}

|office=22nd Treasurer of Wisconsin

|term_start=January 2, 1939

|term_end=August 17, 1947

|predecessor=Solomon Levitan

|successor=John L. Sonderegger

|birth_name=John Melgar Smith

|birth_date={{birth year|1872}}

|birth_place=near Carthage, Illinois, U.S.

|death_date={{death date and age|1947|8|17|1872}}

|party=Republican

|occupation=Politician, businessman

}}

John Melgar Smith (1872 – August 17, 1947) was an American businessman and politician.

Born on a farm near Carthage, Illinois, Smith lived in Minnesota 1891–1895 working as a railroad telegraph operator and station agent. In 1895, he moved to Shell Lake, Wisconsin, where he worked in the cooperative, banking, and lumber industries. In 1938, he was elected State Treasurer, as a Republican, serving until his death on August 17, 1947.[https://web.archive.org/web/20150418012451/http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=2669&keyword=smith John M. Smith, Wisconsin Historical Society]Wisconsin Blue Book 1948, Biographical Sketch of John M. Smith, pg. 7