Smith was named to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1910, when his father was the church's president. When Smith became president of the LDS Church, he was 93 years old; he began his presidential term at an older age than any other president in church history. Smith's tenure as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1951 to 1970 is the third-longest in church history; he served in that capacity during the entire presidency of David O. McKay.