Author: Smith, James Ernest
Alternate names: James “Cap” Ernest Smith; J. E. Smith
Born: 9 July 1908
Died: 23 December 1967
Bio: James “Cap” Ernest Smith was born on July 9, 1908, in Missouri. He attended Jamestown College, where he earned a B.A. in mathematical physics in 1932. His early academic excellence earned him a Rhodes Scholarship and graduate scholarships to the University of Chicago and the California Institute of Technology, where he conducted graduate work in 1933. He later earned a Master of Electrical Engineering from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and was eventually awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science from the University of Jamestown.
Smith began his professional career in 1934 as an instructor of communication engineering at RCA Institutes, a position he held for four years. In 1935, he joined the Engineering Department of R.C.A. Communications, Inc., eventually rising to become the Head of Research and Division Head of RCA Laboratories. During this period, he also served as a graduate lecturer on radio and television at New York University for three years, where he held the title of adjunct professor and authored the book Simplified Filter Design.
After twelve years with RCA, Smith joined the Raytheon Manufacturing Company to lead its microwave communication engineering department. He later transitioned to the Minneapolis-Honeywell Regulator Company, serving as Assistant Vice President and Director of Engineering for the Datamatic Division. He eventually became the Vice President of the Division of EDP Engineering in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, where he directed the development of Honeywell’s first two generations of computer equipment.
A prolific inventor, Smith held numerous patents for modulation and radio-relay control systems. His professional stature was recognized through his election as a Fellow of the Institute of Radio Engineers and his inclusion in Who’s Who in America. He also served as the Past President of the Communications Panel Research and Development Board.
In his personal life, he married Edna Bjorum (class of 1931), and they had one daughter, Marilyn. James Smith passed away on December 23, 1967. He was posthumously inducted into the University of Jamestown Alumni Hall of Fame in 1978.