Elizabeth Lee Smith

Elizabeth Lee Smith, born in 1817, was the daughter of Dr. W. Allen, President of Dartmouth University. In 1843, she married Dr. H. B. Smith, who later became a professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York and passed away in 1877.

Mrs. Smith was known for her contributions to hymnody, particularly through translations of important European hymns into English. Among her notable translations are Je Te salue and O Jesus Christus, which appeared in Schaff’s Christ in Song (1869–1870). Her work helped make continental hymnody accessible to English-speaking congregations, and her translations are recognized for their fidelity to the original texts and their devotional quality.

Elizabeth Lee Smith died in 1898, leaving a legacy of carefully translated hymns that continue to be valued in hymn collections.