Mr. Smith attended Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa, where he graduated with a degree in History before going on to get his Masters Degree in History from the University of California, Los Angeles. Upon completion of this, David returned to Winnebago as the Tribal Historian. He has been assisting the tribe through his writing for over 25 years . In addition, he travels frequently throughout the world for repatriation activities.

Mr. Smith keeps very busy maintaining his duties as the Tribal Historian for Winnebago, Director of Indian Studies at Little Priest Tribal College and the President of the Winnebago Historical Society. In addition to his duties, Mr. Smith has written his first book, Folklore of the Winnebago Tribe, which was published in 1998. Currently, Mr. Smith is working on publishing a book about Chief Little Priest.

Perhaps one accomplishment for which he should be noted is his work done to retain the Winnebago land. Mr. Smith was incredibly instrumental in fact finding when the land was being threatened. Because of his research, he was able to get the case dismissed.

The Tribe would like to acknowledge all of Mr. Smith’s efforts and to thank him for his loyalty over the years.

If you are interested in more information about David Smith's books please email him at: tribalhistorian@winnebagotribe.com