Gordon V. Smith
| Right Reverend Gordon V. Smith, S.T.D., D.D. |
|
|---|---|
| VI Bishop of Iowa | |
| Church | Episcopal Church |
| See | Iowa |
| In office | April 20, 1950 - December 31, 1971 |
| Predecessor | Elwood Lindsay Haines |
| Successor | Walter Cameron Righter |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1931 |
| Consecration | April 20, 1950 by Most Rev. Henry Knox Sherrill |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
August 6, 1906 Kalamazoo, Michigan |
| Died | August 27, 1997 (aged 91) Palos Verdes Estates, California |
Gordon V. Smith (August 6, 1906 – August 27, 1997) was a bishop in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He was bishop of the Diocese of Iowa from 1950-1971. He was the first Bishop of Iowa who was canonically resident in the state when he was elected bishop.
Gordon Smith was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He was educated at Kalamazoo College and General Theological Seminary, and was ordained a deacon and a priest in 1931. His wife’s name was Florence and they raised six children.
As a priest, he served Grace Church in Albion, Michigan, from 1931–35; Grace Church in Ponca City, Oklahoma, from 1935 to 1943; and St. Paul's Church in Des Moines, Iowa, from 1943–1950.
Smith was elected the sixth Bishop of Iowa in 1950 at a Special Convention. He was consecrated on April 20 of the same year at St. Paul’s in Des Moines by Bishops Henry Knox Sherrill, William Blair Roberts and Lewis B. Whittemore. He was the 498th Episcopal bishop consecrated in the United States. He served the diocese during a period of growth, and strengthened it financially. He served on the Episcopal Church’s Executive Council for six years, and attended the Lambeth Conference in 1958 and 1968.
In 1951, the Iowa Canterbury Association was organized and increased the emphasis of providing pastoral ministry to college students across the state. Two years later, the diocese celebrated its centennial and a short history was written by the diocesan historiographer Millington F. Carpenter. Celebrations in Cedar Rapids where carried nationwide by CBS Radio and from Trinity Cathedral in Davenport by WOC-TV.
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