Ephraim Knight Smart (1813-1872) a U.S. Representative, was born in Prospect (now in Searsport) September 3, 1813. He attended the common schools, completed preparatory studies under private tutors and attended Maine Wesleyan Seminary (now Kents Hill School) at Readfield.
He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1838 and began his practice in Camden. Smart was appointed postmaster of Camden in 1838.
A member of the Maine State Senate in 1841 and 1842, he was appointed aide-de-camp with the rank of lieutenant colonel on the staff of Governor John Fairfield in 1842.
Smart moved to Missouri in 1843, continued the practice of his profession, then returned to Camden the following year and resumed the practice of law these. Again appointed postmaster of Camden in 1845, he was elected as a Democrat to the Thirtieth Congress (March 4, 1847-March 3, 1849) and the Thirty-second Congress (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1853).
A collector of customs at Belfast 1853-1858, he established the Maine Free Press in 1854, and served as editor for three years.
A member of the Maine House of Representatives in 1858, he was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Maine in 1860. Smart again served in the Maine State Senate in 1862, moved to Biddeford in 1869 and established the Maine Democrat. He died in Camden September 29, 1872, with interment in the Mountain Street Cemetery.
Additional resources
Ephraim Knight Smart Congressional Biography: https://bioguideretro.congress.gov/Home/MemberDetails?memIndex=S000503 (accessed January 10, 2021)