William "Extra Billy" Smith (September 6, 1797 – May 18, 1887) was a lawyer, congressman, the 30th and 35th Governor of Virginia, and a Major General in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.
Smith was admitted to the bar and commenced practicing law in Culpeper, Culpeper County, Virginia, in 1818. In 1827 he established a line of United States mail and passenger post coaches through Virginia, which he then expanded into the Carolinas and Georgia in 1831. He pursued a wider stagecoach service and steamboat enterprise connecting Richmond and Baltimore, Pensacola and Galveston, Norfolk and Baltimore. He was granted his U.S. postal routes by President Andrew Jackson’s (March 15, 1767-June 8, 1845) administration. He managed and ran his “pony express” postal service routes from Monte Rosa (a.k.a., Neptune Lodge) and the large Italianate barn and associated buildings on the same property in Warrenton, Virginia.
The Second Continental Congress of 1775 established the United States Postal Service and Benjamin Franklin was appointed as the first postmaster general. As the postal service became a vital means of communicating in an ever growing nation, its importance was recognized in 1872 when the USPS was elevated to a cabinet-level department. As noted, it was the administration of President Andrew Jackson that awarded Smith with his first postal service contract. He was originally contracted to deliver mail between Washington, D.C. and Milledgeville, Georgia (then the Capital of Georgia). Ambitious, Smith grew that service by adding other mail routes, for which he charged “extra” postal fees. During an investigation of the Post Office Department, Smith's “extra” fees caught the attention of U.S. Senator Benjamin W. Leigh. Thereafter, he was familiarly known as "Extra Billy".
Extra Billy was tremulously popular and a charismatic orator that used a paternal, but emotional style of speech. He was a member of society and was seen as a successful entrepreneur, well-known businessman and a shrewd and motivating political figure in both the north and south. He began his political career as a member of the Virginia Senate from Culpeper, Madison, Orange, Rappahannock and Greene Counties in 1836. He then served as a member of the U.S. House of Representative from Virginia’s 13th district between 1841 and 1843. In 1845, Smith was elected by legislators to serve as the 30th Governor of Virginia. He served a four year term through 1849. His term as Governor corresponded with President Polk’s Mexican-American War (1846 to 1848).
In the 1844 Democrat and a protégé of Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk was elected President on a platform of expanding U.S. territory in Oregon and Texas. He advocated manifest destiny and the expansion of the U.S. through negotiation or force, if necessary. In 1845 the U.S. annexed Texas, which provoked Mexico. Building on his expansionist doctrine, Polk sent U.S. Army troops to the area as well as a diplomatic mission to Mexico to “persuade” the negotiated sale of the territory. The presence of U.S. troops', by Polk’s design, was intended to inflame the situation and lure Mexico into starting a conflict. Polk sought an excuse to argue to Congress that a declaration of war was required. On April 25, 1846, the Mexican cavalry attacked and killed about a dozen U.S. soldiers that were in the disputed zone under the command of General Zachary Taylor. They then laid siege to an American fort along the Rio Grande. Taylor called in reinforcements, and – with the help of superior rifles and artillery – was able to defeat the Mexicans at the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma.
Following those battles, Polk told the U.S. Congress that the “cup of forbearance has been exhausted, even before Mexico passed the boundary of the United States, invaded our territory, and shed American blood upon American soil.” Two days later, on May 13th, Congress declared war, despite opposition from some northern lawmakers mostly because of Texas’s tie to slavery. No official declaration of war ever came from Mexico.
The Mexican-American War (1846-1848) was the first U.S. armed conflict chiefly fought on foreign soil. The war raged within the territory until February 2, 1848, when the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed. With it Polk achieved his expansionist goals as it formally recognized the Republic of Texas’s claim that the Rio Grande, not the more northern Nueces River, was the U.S.- Mexico border. The Republic of Texas had proffered the Rio Grande border based on the Treaty of Velasco that was signed by Mexican President Santa Anna and through Polk’s efforts that was now codified. In addition, Mexico recognized the U.S.’s annexation of Texas and agreed to sell California and the rest of its territory north of the Rio Grande to the U.S. for $15 million as well as pay reparations for damages claims. Under Polk, for the first time the US territory spanned from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
Extra Billy reportedly was a key figure behind Polk’s ascension to the Presidency and rallied Virginians around James Polk. In the 1844 election Extra Billy delivered Virginia’s electoral vote to the Democrats helping Polk to the Presidency. His success as a king maker led to his nomination for Governor and his first term (1846 – 1849). Later and in appreciation for Smith’s Virginian support, President Polk visited Smith and Monte Rosa as part of his inauguration tour. Polk is but one of many prominent figures that helped shaped the 19th century to visit with Extra Billy at Monte Rosa. Later, the 14th President of the United States, Franklin Pierce, also a friend of Extra Billy’s is thought to have visited Monte Rosa.
Despite his close ties to Polk and vocal support of the Mexico-American War as Governor, Extra Billy failed to obtain the legislative support needed, as his Governorship ended, to continue his political career as a U.S. Senator. Instead, in 1853 legislators elected him to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives with nearly 52% of the vote. He served in that capacity through 1859 after winning three consecutive two-year elections. Extra Billy’s was a colorful, charismatic and well liked. His political life was characterized by pursuing a progressive economic vision and trying to bridge the growing rift between the Northern and Southern states to avoid secession and/or war. Despite such efforts, Civil War between the States began in 1861.
When Virginia seceded from the Union on May 23, 1861, Smith declined a commission as a brigadier general because he rightly admitted he was "wholly ignorant of drill and tactics". However, he took command of the Confederate troops after the death of their commander John Quincy Marr (June 1, 1861), who is reported to be the first Confederate soldier killed by a Union soldier in combat at the Battle of Fairfax Court House. Smith wrote to General Robert E. Lee to propose he lead the 49th Virginia Volunteers, acknowledging his military prospects “were anything but flattering”. As it was, the Lee family had historical ties to the Monte Rosa lands that were at that time now owned by Extra Billy. He received his commission and was appointed colonel of the 49th Virginia Infantry regiment just three days before the First Battle of Bull Run (a.k.a., First Battle of Manassas, July 21, 1861), where the regiment and he as the new commander performed well.
In the midst of the War and Before the Gettysburg Campaign, Extra Billy was re-elected as the 35th Governor of Virginia. Virginia's second constitution of 1830 prohibits a Governor from serving back-to-back four year terms, but allows for an individual to be re-elected after others have served. To date, Extra Billy is one of only two Virginia governors that have been elected to a second term since 1830. He was among the first Southern governors to advocate arming blacks to provide manpower for the Confederacy. His second term as Governor ended abruptly with his arrest on May 9, 1865, one month to the day after General Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia on April 9, 1865 at the Appomattox Court House. He was paroled on June 8, 1863, upon which he returned to his estate, Monte Rosa (later renamed "Neptune Lodge") where he engaged in agricultural pursuits.
On January 31, 1863, and at the age of 65, Smith took on and was the oldest Confederate brigadier general to hold field command in the war. He participated in eight major battles and was wounded three times. He distinguished himself by wearing an unorthodox field uniform that included a tall beaver hat and a blue cotton umbrella. He and his unit were known for their “coolness” and “fearlessness”. He was not a trained military tactician and was known to be critical of those that were. Instead of following standard military doctrine, he encouraged his troops to take a commonsense approach. He was described by Maj. Gen. J. E. B. Stuart as "conspicuously brave and self-possessed." But ultimately he is infamously known for his failings at the Battle of Gettysburg where he refused to pursue retreating Union XI Corps troops out of concerned for Union forces that were approaching from his left. This was deemed a tactical mistake and played a significant role in why the Confederates forces failed to attack and take Cemetery Hill on July 1, 1863. He was the only general not commended in Major General Jubal Early's official report. Accordingly, Extra Billy resigned his commission on July 10, 1863. He nevertheless received an essentially honorary promotion to major general and Assistant Inspector General on August 12, 1863 and continued to serve the war effort by taking on recruiting duties in Virginia.
At 80, Extra Billy became a member of the Virginia House of Delegates from Fauquier County between 1876 and 1877. This was his last political position. He died at Monte Rosa sitting in his favorite chair on May 18, 1887 at the age of 90 and was buried in Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond, Virginia. The ground of the Virginia State Capital has a statue honoring Mr. Smith.