A post office was opened in 1863. One early settler of Smith River was William Dows Rexford, who moved there with his sons in the early 1870s.
Demographics
The 2010 United States Census reported that Smith River had a population of 866. The population density was 217.3 people per square mile. The racial makeup of Smith River was 528 White, 1 African American, 59 Native American, 5 Asian, 0 Pacific Islander, 234 from other races, and 39 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 293 persons. The Census reported that 866 people lived in households, 0 lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 were institutionalized. There were 315 households, out of which 127 had children under the age of 18 living in them, 160 were opposite-sex married couplesliving together, 44 had a female householder with no husband present, 18 had a male householder with no wife present. There were 22 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 3 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 76 households were made up of individuals and 40 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75. There were 222 families ; the average family size was 3.23. The population was spread out with 267 people under the age of 18, 55 people aged 18 to 24, 220 people aged 25 to 44, 217 people aged 45 to 64, and 107 people who were 65 years of age or older. The median agewas 34.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. There were 363 housing units at an average density of 91.1 per square mile, of which 315 were occupied, of which 181 were owner-occupied, and 134 were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.6%. 473 people lived in owner-occupied housing units and 393 people lived in rental housing units.
Climate
Smith River is the wettest human-inhabited spot in the state of California, and experiences an Oceanic climate, for it is just beyond the northern periphery of the Mediterranean climate zone of coastal California. Seasonal precipitation patterns strictly follow the patterns evident in a Mediterranean regime however, although the rather copious average annual precipitation amount of wildly exceeds the precipitation limit for Mediterranean climates implemented in the revised version of the Köppen climate classification by over twofold. The summer months from June to September receive very stark precipitation, with July and August in particular being relatively dry. In stark contrast, winter is stupendously wet, and windy, with approximately 60% of the year's total average precipitation observed in the four-month period from November to March. Temperatures remain profoundly moderate throughout the year, fluctuating only several degrees.
Politics
In the state legislature, Smith River is in, and. Federally, Smith River is in.
