In Memory of Child Star and Peace Activist Samantha Smith: Four Decades After Her Tragic Death

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It's been 39 years since the tragic death of child star Samantha Smith, best known for her role on the short-lived, but acclaimed Robert Wagner TV series Lime Street (ABC, 1985-1986). Born on June 29, 1972, in Houlton, Maine, Smith died at only 12 years old on August 25, 1985. Before Lime Street, she was best known for a legendary letter she wrote to Soviet Premier Yuri Andropov. Her middle name was “Reed,” her nickname was “Sam,” and this is her story.

A Closer Look

It was 1983 when Samantha Smith initially arrived in the public eye. That’s when she, at just 10 years old, composed a letter to Soviet Premier Yuri Andropov. In that iconic letter, she asked, “Why do you want to conquer the whole world, or at least our country?”

Moved by Smith’s sincerity and maturity, Andropov told the young girl he had no such intention. He then invited Smith and her family to the USSR for a special tour. The bright and articulate schoolgirl became famous overnight.

Relocated to Lime Street

In early 1984, Samantha Smith caught the eye of Hollywood and was cast in the one-hour series, Lime Street, playing the eldest of two young daughters to Robert Wagner. Fresh off a long run with Stephanie Powers on TV’s Hart to Hart, Wagner was cast as divorced father James Greyson Culver, a Virginia horse breeder who partners with Brit Edward Wingate (Patrick Macnee) to investigate insurance cases. At home, he lives with daughters Elizabeth (Smith) and Margaret Ann (Maia Brewton) plus his dashing dad Henry (Lew Ayres).

Samantha Smith with her fellow cast members on 'Lime Street': Robert Wagner, Lew Ayres, and Maia BrewtonPhoto byimdb.com

Then Tragedy Struck

On August 25, 1985, Samantha Smith and her real-life father were returning home aboard Bar Harbor Airlines Flight 1808 after filming an episode of Lime Street. While trying to land at Lewiston-Auburn Regional Airport in Auburn, Maine, their commuter aircraft struck trees, killing all six passengers and two crew on board.

Accusations of foul play circulated widely in the Soviet Union, followed by an investigation in the United States. The final report: no foul play

A Sad Day, A Lasting Legacy

Approximately 1,000 people attended Samantha Smith’s funeral in Augusta, Maine, and she was eulogized in Moscow as a champion of peace. Attendees included Robert Wagner and Vladimir Kulagin of the Soviet Embassy in Washington, D.C., who read a personal message of condolence from Mikhail Gorbachev.

The Soviet government named a diamond, a rose, a stamp, and a mountain in tribute to Smith.

In Samantha’s home state of Maine, a grade school was named after her, and a statue, showing her releasing a dove while a bear cub (representing both Maine and Russia) rests at her feet, was placed before the Maine State House in Augusta.