James Smith (1826 – October 31, 1881) was a Union Navy sailor in the American Civil War and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Mobile Bay. Smith's official Medal of Honor citation reads: Smith was married at St. James' Church, Manhattan, in May 1870 and had three children. He died on October 31, 1881, at age 54 or 55 and was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave in Calvary Cemetery, New York City.