Samuel Francis Smith was an American Baptist minister, journalist, and author. He is best known for having written the lyrics to "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", which he entitled "America".
Portrait of Samuel Francis Smith by Charles Delevan Mosher, 1890
A sketch of Samuel Francis Smith from a life sketch in The Express
Samuel Francis Smith's foster son Thornton Chase, The first American Baháʼí
Grave of Samuel Francis Smith, in Newton, Massachusetts
"My Country, 'Tis of Thee", also known as simply "America", is an American patriotic song, the lyrics of which were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the de facto national anthems of the United States before the adoption of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the official U.S. national anthem in 1931. The melody used is adopted from the national anthem of the United Kingdom, "God Save the King".
Aretha Franklin singing "My Country, 'Tis Of Thee" at the first inauguration of Barack Obama (20 January 2009)