His full name was John Fred Smith. Although he appears in some sources as John F., he preferred all his life to be called J. Fred Smith, and that is the way his name is inscribed on his gravestone. In 1915 he was President of the Bank of Cohoctah, Michigan and in 1928 he was the Postmaster of Herkimer.
J. Fred Smith was buried in Byron Cemetery, which is located in section 24, in the village of Byron, Burns Township, Michigan. The inscription on grave number 207 reads: J. Fred Smith 1862-1939.