James Cossar Smith, born 1887 in Queensland, was the son of James Smith and Sophia Rose. He grew up in Brisbane but owing to illness spent most of his time in regional Queensland, at Woombye and Rochedale where he had pineapple farms. He was a process engraver working for Brisbane firms such as Murray Fraser, Watson, Fegurson Ltd. and Jackson & O'Sullivan. While at Jackson & O'Sullivan, Smith process engraved, in colour, William Bustard's illustrations for the book The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe published in 1949.

James Cossar Smith's father, James Smith was an amateur photographer. He was born in 1856 at Edinburg, Scotland, son of James Smith and Elizabeth, née Cossar. He married Sophia Rose in 1886 at Brisbane; they had four sons and one daughter. In 1883 James Smith joined the composing department at The Telegraph (Brisbane). In 1894 he was appointed overseer of the mechanical department, a position he held until his retirement in 1919.