John Smith (d.1783) was a blacksmith in Bertie County who was involved in the Gourd Patch Conspiracy and went on the run with William Brimage and a man who identified himself as "Campbell" in an attempt to escape the state in July 1777. Their plan failed however and Brimage and Smith were captured and brought to the Edenton jail in August 1777. In 1778 he signed an oath swearing his allegiance to the State of North Carolina and promising to report any treasonous conspiracies that might threaten North Carolina's independence.