Lieutenant Jabez Smith, Jr.

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Anchor'd in the haven of Rest

In Memory of

JABEZ SMITH Junr

Lieut of Marines

on board the Continental

Ship Trumbull

born in Groton

State of Connecticut

August 31, 1751

departed this Life in Boston

June 28, 1780

Aged 29 Years

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Jabez was the third child and oldest son of Captain Jabez Smith and his second wife, Amie (Avery) Smith. He was born in Groton, CT on August 31, 1751. The Smith family was one of the oldest families in Groton, and remained prominent well into the 19th century. Jabez Sr. was chosen Constable for the town beginning in 1741, and was a member of the Groton Traynd Band (the local militia company). As a member of the Traynd Band he served during the Seven Year's War in the 4th Connecticut Regiment under Colonel David Wooster.

Jabez Jr. chose to follow in his father's footsteps and become a military man. He joined the Continental Army as a Corporal in Connecticut in July of 1777. A few months later he chose to join the Continental Marines. In 1779 he was assigned to the frigate USS Trumbull under the command of Captain of Marines Gilbert Saltonstall. Though the Trumbull had been launched from Chatham, CT in 1776, it was too low in the water to sail out of the Connecticut River into the open ocean as intended. It took three years and some practical ingenuity to get her over the bar at the mouth of the river and into the Long Island Sound. The Trumbull sailed north along the New England coast and saw its first combat on June 1, 1780 against a British letter-of-marque named Watt off the Massachusetts coast. Though it lasted only two and a half hours, it was one of the bloodiest naval battles of the American Revolution. Both ships received heavy damage and saw many casualties. Lt. Smith was among those wounded, and he was first brought ashore and then to Boston where he died on June 28, 1780.

Lt. Smith's gravestone can be found in the Granary Burying Ground in Boston, MA. It is unique, in that it has one of the earliest known representations of the flag of the United States. The carver is currently unknown.