William Henry Smith (1792–1865)
William Henry Smith (7 July 1792 – 28 July 1865) was a British
Career
Born the son of
In 1812, following the death of Zaccheus Coates, a business associate of his mother, he went into the family business in partnership with his mother and his brother. In 1816 his mother died and the business was equally divided between him and his brother Henry Edward Smith. William proved the more capable businessman of the two, and the firm became known as W H Smith.[2] After his father's death, the business was valued at £1,280 (about ~£72185 in 2012, adjusted by inflation).
In 1846, he admitted his son as a partner, and the firm became W H Smith & Son.[3] Book stalls at railway stations proved an especially successful endeavour.[4]
He is buried at Kensal Green Cemetery, London.[5]
Family
In 1817, William Henry married Mary Ann Cooper, a rigorous practitioner of Wesley's Protestantism: they married at St George's, Hanover Square and eventually they had eight children: seven girls, and one boy, who was also named William Henry Smith.
References
- ^ History 1792-1900
- ^ WH Smith: History
- ^ "The First WH Smith Railway Bookstall".[dead link]
- ^ Walbank, Alan. 1960. “Railway Reading.” The Book Collector 9 no.3 (Autumn): 285-291.
- ^ Paths of Glory. Friends of Kensal Green Cemetery. 1997. p. 91.
Bibliography
- Charles Wilson. First with the News: The History of W. H. Smith, 1792–1972. Jonathan Cape, 1985. ISBN 978-0-22402-156-2