John (1857-1924) was a son of Malcolm Smith and Mary Maciver. 

John was married three times. In 1896 he married Mary MacCuish of Quidinish;  Mary died in childbirth, along with their child. In 1914 John married Mary Macdonald, from Grimsay; John and Mary did not have any children. In 1919 John married Margaret Maclennan; John and Margaret did not have any children.

After John came under the influence of the Christian gospels, he left Bernera and spent the remainder of his life in the Southern Isles. He was a lay-preacher at first, preaching all over Harris until he got a position as a catechist with the United Free Church in Scalpay. He spent about eighteen years there.

From there he went to Grimsay in North Uist, where he stayed for a short time before returning to Borve in North Harris. He died in Scarista.

John was a prolific writer, and some of his work was published in Bàrdachd leòdhais.  Margaret outlived John; she collected as many of her husband's compositions as she could and they were later published as A' chulaidh as fheàrr : taghadh de laoidhean.