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Author and Military Historian Daniel Smith, Sr. is retired from twenty-six years in the U.S. Navy.
He and his wife, Betty Thomas Smith, have two grown children and reside in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
After retiring from the Navy, Smith joined the all-volunteer Tennessee State Guard as a Captain. He retired from the State Guard after seven years as a Lieutenant Colonel. He has an undergraduate degree from Covenant College and performed post-graduate work in World History at California State University. After retirement from the Navy, he spent 23 years as an IT manager at the Tennessee Valley Authority and another 10 years as a consulting Senior Project Manager at Olav & Co. He was an associate editor of the automobile magazine Vette Vues in the mid-1970s.
Dan was executive director of the National Medal of Honor Museum of Military History in Chattanooga, Tennessee, from 1997 to 1999. During this period, he was also editor of the museum’s newsletter. He has published four military history reference books, many classic car magazine articles, and short story fiction pieces. His military history books include three on U.S. Navy memorabilia and one book titled “The Medal of Honor and the Battles for Chattanooga.” He has recently finished his first novel, The Biltmore’s Mona Lisa, A Heist Novel.
He specializes in the history of the military Medal of Honor and World War II military history. Aside from reading, his favorite pastime is showing and judging classic automobiles.
After attending Navy boot camp in San Diego, California, Smith spent the next seven years mostly aboard naval ships called “destroyers,” but nicknamed “Tin Cans” by sailors. Aboard these destroyers, he completed a South American cruise visiting every major port in South America. Next, aboard a small naval mine sweeper ship, he made a Mediterranean cruise, visiting many southern European ports, including the island of Malta. He had two shore duty commands during his first seven years of naval service. During his first shore duty command, Smith was stationed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where, as a Radarman, he tracked the Navy’s then-secret U-2 flights over Cuba.
After a brief hiatus, Smith demonstrated adaptability by transitioning his Naval job specialty from Radar Technician to Data Processing Technician (computer specialist). Following his computer school training, he volunteered for Vietnam service and was stationed with the Naval Support Activity group in Saigon for a year.
He spent thirteen years on active duty before entering the Naval Reserve program in Chattanooga. He continued his service for an additional thirteen years in the Reserves, retiring as the Command Senior Chief of the Chattanooga Naval Reserve Center. In this pivotal role, he served as the senior enlisted advisor, bridging the gap between the commanding officer of the Chattanooga Naval Reserve Center and 250 enlisted sailors. Smith was twice awarded the Navy Achievement Medal.
After retiring from the Naval Reserve, he joined the all-volunteer Tennessee State Guard, entering as a Captain. He retired six years later as a Lieutenant Colonel. During his State Guard career, LTC Smith was awarded the Tennessee State Guard’s Officer Achievement ribbon, the Commendation ribbon, and the Tennessee National Guard’s Distinguished Service Ribbon for his S3 Operations Planning work during the 1996 U.S. Olympics at the Ocoee River White Water Rafting venue.
Dan was the Executive Director of the National Medal of Honor Museum of Military History in Chattanooga from 1997 to 2000. He is the author of four military history reference books and a fiction novel.
