Encyclopedia

William Prout William Prout (January 15, 1785 – April 9, 1850) was an English chemist, physician and natural theologian. His life was spent as a practising physician in London, but he also occupied himself with chemical research.
William Proxmire Edward William Proxmire (November 11 1915–December 15 2005) was a member of the Democratic Party who served in the United States Senate for the state of Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989. He graduated from The Hill School in 1933, Yale University in 1938, Harvard Business School in 1940, and Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in 1948.
William Pryce Cumby Captain William Pryce Cumby, RN, CB (20 March 1771 - 27 September 1837) was an officer in the Royal Navy whose excellent service during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars was highlighted when he was thrust into the limelight following his service at the battle of Trafalgar. During the battle his ship, the HMS Bellerophon was ountnumbered and almost overrun, but despite mounting casualties, heavy bombardment and the death of his captain John Cooke, the then Lieutenant Cumby ably took command, leading a charge which cleared his decks of boarders and ultimately captured the enemy ship attached to his own.
William Prynne William Prynne (1600 – October 24, 1669) was a seventeenth-century author, polemicist, and political figure. He was a prominent Puritan opponent of the church policy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Laud.
William Pugh (Welsh author) Captain William Pugh was a Royalist, who in 1648 composed a Welsh poem in which loyalty to his king is combined with devotion to the Roman Catholic Church. He begins by saying that the political evils afflicting Britain are God's punishment for the country's abandonment of the true religion.
William Pulteney Alison William Pulteney Alison (1790-1859), son of Archibald Alison (Scottish author) and brother of Archibald Alison (English historian), was a distinguished professor of medicine in Edinburgh University, and a philanthropist.
William Pulteney Pulteney Lieutenant-General Sir William Pulteney Pulteney GCVO, KCB, KCMG, DSO (1861–14 November, 1941) was a British general during the First World War. Pulteney spent most of the war in command of British III Corps.
William Pulteney, 1st Earl of Bath William Pulteney, 1st Earl of Bath, PC (22 March 1684 – July 7, 1764) was an English politician, created Earl of Bath in 1742 by King George II; he is sometimes stated to have been Prime Minister, for the shortest term ever (two days), though most modern sources reckon that he cannot be considered to have held the office.
William Purdom William Purdom (1880-1921) was a British plant explorer sent by Veitch and the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University to the northern provinces of China in 1909. He collected and photographed plants for the Arboretum along China’s Yellow River for three years, 1909–1911.
William Pynchon William Pynchon (October 11, 1590 – October 29, 1662) was a Colonial Assistant, Treasurer, and original Patentee of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He led the 1635 settlement of Springfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts, which was named after his home town in England.
William Q De Funiak William Quinby De Funiak (November 16, 1901 – November 2 1981), who wrote as William Q. De Funiak, was an American writer and law academic who wrote what was probably the first systematic American-British, British-American dictionary.
William Quantrill William Clarke Quantrill (July 31 1837 – June 6 1865), was a pro-Confederate guerrilla fighter during the American Civil War whose actions, particularly a bloody raid on Lawrence, Kansas, remain controversial to this day.
William Quentin Jones William Quentin Jones (August 29 1968 – August 22, 2003) was convicted of the 1987 murder of Edward Peebles and executed in 2003 by the state of North Carolina at the Central Prison in Raleigh. Quentin attended high school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and was an avid soccer player.
William Quinn (phreaker) William Quinn (also known as decoder and sometimes as 'RijilV') is an Eastchester, New York phone phreak who is best known for co-hosting the phreaking internet radio show Default Radio. He also created internet radio show The MindWAR and is credited with creating internet TV show DougTV.
William R. Caddy Private First Class William Robert Caddy, (1925-1945) was a United States Marine who sacrificed his life to save the lives of his platoon leader and platoon sergeant during the Battle of Iwo Jima. For his heroic bravery, he was posthumously awarded his nation's highest military decoration — the Medal of Honor.
William R. Ferris William Reynolds Ferris (born February 5, 1942 in Vicksburg, Mississippi) is an American author and scholar and former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. He co-founded, with Judy Peiser, the Center for Southern Folklore in Memphis, Tennessee and, with Charles Reagan Wilson, the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi.
William R. Higgins William Richard "Rich" Higgins (January 15, 1945 – July 6, 1990) was a United States Marine Corps colonel who was captured in 1988 while serving on a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. He was held hostage, tortured and eventually brutally murdered by his captors.
William R. Hoel William Ryan Hoel (7 March 1824 – May 23, 1879) was an officer in the United States Navy during the American Civil War. A native of Ohio, Hoel was a Mississippi River steamboat pilot when he entered the United States Navy 19 October 1861.
William R. Hopkins William Rowland Hopkins (July 26, 1869–February 9, 1961) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the first city manager of Cleveland, Ohio from 1924 to 1929, but is often regarded as the 41st mayor of the city.
William R. Huntington William Reed Huntington (1907-1990) was an American architect and Quaker representative to the United Nations and director of the Quaker program there. As a pacifist, Huntington was active for years in the American Friends Service Committee, more commonly known as the Quakers.
William R. Lyman William Roy "Link" Lyman (November 30, 1898–December 28, 1972) was a professional American football player. He played tackle for the Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Bulldogs, Frankford Yellow Jackets and Chicago Bears.
William R. P. George William Richard Phillip George (20 October 1912 - 20 November 2006) was a Welsh solicitor and Welsh poet. He is perhaps best known for being the nephew of the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Lloyd George.
William R. Rathvon William Roedel Rathvon, CSB, (December 31 1854– March 2 1939), sometimes incorrectly referred to as William V. Rathvon, is the only known eye-witness to Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, of the over 10,000 witnesses, to have left an audio recording of his impressions of that experience in 1938, one year before his death.
William R. Roberts William Randall Roberts (1830 - 1897) was a diplomat, Fenian Society member, and United States Representative from New York (1871 - 1875). Born in County Cork, Ireland, he immigrated to the United States in July 1849, received a limited schooling, and was a merchant in New York City until 1869, until he retired.
William R. Terrill William Rufus Terrill (April 21 1834 – October 8, 1862) was a United States Army soldier and general who was killed in action at the Battle of Perryville during the American Civil War. His brother was also killed during the same war, making the Terrills one of the few sets of American brothers killed in action while commanding brigades.
William Radford (New York) William Radford (June 24, 1814 - January 18, 1870) was a United States Representative from New York. Born in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, he received a limited schooling, moved to New York City in 1829, and engaged in mercantile pursuits.
William Ralph Meredith Chief Justice Sir William Ralph Meredith (31 March 1840 – 21 August 1923) was a politician in the Canadian province of Ontario. He was leader of the Ontario Conservatives from 1878 to 1894, and was elected Chancellor of the University of Toronto in 1900.
William Ramsay Sir William Ramsay (October 2, 1852 – July 23, 1916) was a Scottish chemist who discovered the noble gases and received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1904 (along with Lord Rayleigh who received the Nobel Prize in Physics that same year for the discovery of argon).
William Ramsay (manufacturer) William Ramsay (6 June 1868–4 September 1914) was a Scottish-born Australian shoe polish manufacturer. In 1906, Ramsay developed "Kiwi" brand shoe polish, today one of the most famous shoe polish brands in the world.
William Randell William Richard Randell (May 2, 1824 – March 4, 1911), Australian politician and pioneer. Born in Devon, England, Randell emigrated to the newly-founded colony of South Australia in 1837 with the family; his father, William Beavis Randell, working for the South Australia Company.
William Randolph Hearst II William Randolph Hearst II (January 27, 1908 - May 14, 1993) became editor-in-chief of Hearst Newspapers after the death of his father William Randolph Hearst and won a Pulitzer Prize for his commentaries in 1955.
William Ransom Johnson Pegram William Ransom Johnson Pegram, known as "Willie" or "Willy", (June 29, 1841 – April 2, 1865) was an important young artillery officer in Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia during the American Civil War.
William Rastell William Rastell (1508 - 27 August 1565) was an English printer and judge, born in London. At the age of seventeen he went to the University of Oxford, but did not take a degree, being probably called home to superintend his fathers business.
William Ratcliffe William Ratcliffe (born Liverpool, 21 March, 1882—died 26 March, 1963) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Rathbone IV William Rathbone IV (10 June 1757-11 February 1809) was a member of the noted Rathbone family of Liverpool, England. He was the son of William Rathbone III and Rachel Rutter, and was a Liverpool ship-owner and merchant, involved in the organisation of American trade with Liverpool.
William Rathbone VI William Rathbone VI (11 February 1819 — 6 March 1902, Liverpool) was a British politician noted for his philanthropic and public work. He sat as an Member of Parliament and was a member of the noted Rathbone family.
William Rathje William Rathje (born 1 July, 1945) is an archaeologist and professor now at Stanford University, and formerly at the University of Arizona. He is the longtime director of the Garbage Project, which has for decades studied trends in discards by field research in trash dumps.
William Rawls William Rawls is a fictional police officer in the Baltimore Police Department played by John Doman on the HBO drama The Wire. Over the course of the series he has ascended to the rank of Deputy Commissioner of Operations.
William Raynor William Raynor (July, 1795 - December 13, 1860) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Rea (ironmaster) William Rea of Monmouth is probably best known to history as the compiler of a list of British ironworks. His importance to the charcoal iron industry of the early 18th century was as the managing partner of the Foley family's ironworks in and about the Forest of Dean from 1705 to 1725.
William Reddington Hewlett William Reddington Hewlett (May 20, 1913 – January 12, 2001) was the co-founder, with David Packard, of the Hewlett-Packard Company (HP). He was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan but moved to San Francisco at the age of 3 years.
William Redfern William Redfern (born Trowbridge, Wiltshire, ca 1774, died Edinburgh, Scotland July 1833) was sentenced to death for his part in the naval Mutiny of the Nore in 1797. After spending four years in an English jail he was transported to New South Wales in 1802.
William Redmond William Archer Redmond (1886–17 April 1932) was the son of John Redmond, the Irish nationalist politician and leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party from 1900 to 1918. He was one of a tiny handful of people who served as a Members of Parliament in the British House of Commons as well as a Teachta Dála of Dáil Eireann, the Irish parliament.
William Reginald Cotter William Reginald Cotter (March 1883 - March 14, 1916) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Reginald Hall Admiral Sir William Reginald Hall (28 June 1870 – 22 October 1943) was the British Director of Naval Intelligence (DNI) from 1914 to 1919. Together with Sir Alfred Ewing he was responsible for the establishment of the Royal Navy's codebreaking operation, Room 40, which decoded the Zimmerman telegram, a major factor in the entry of the United States in World War I.
William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American lawyer, jurist, and a political figure, who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the Chief Justice of the United States. A proponent of a federalism that favored state power, his legacy includes the first limits on Congress's power under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution since the 1930s.
William Reid (general) Sir William Reid (1791-1858) was a British soldier, administrator, and meteorologist, born at Kinglassie, Fifeshire. He was educated at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, was commissioned lieutenant of engineers in 1809, and in 1810 joined Wellington's army at Lisbon.
William Reid (VC) William Reid, VC, (December 21, 1921 – November 28, 2001) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Remington William Walter Remington (1917-1954) was an economist employed in various federal government positions until his career was interrupted by accusations of espionage made by the Soviet spy and defector Elizabeth Bentley. He was convicted of perjury in connection with these charges in 1953, and murdered in prison in 1954.
William Rennie William Rennie (31 October 1822–22 August 1887) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Revelle William Revelle is a psychology professor at Northwestern University working in personality psychology. Revelle studies the biological basis of personality and motivation, psychometric theory, the structure of daily mood, and models of attention and memory.
William Reymond William Reymond is a French writer who is famous in Europe and Canada for publishing the detailed account of Billie Sol Estes on the Kennedy assassination. Author of JFK : Le Dernier TĂ©moin, he claims that Cliff Carter and Mack Wallace were key to helping plot the murder of the US President.
William Reynolds (VC) William Reynolds (1827 - October 20, 1869) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Richard Arnold William Richard Arnold, (July 7, 1881 - July 30, 1957) was the son of Thomas Arnold, co-proprietor of the Glanyrafon Tinplate Works, Clydach, Glamorgan and a Welsh rugby union international. Arnold himself lived in Morriston, near Swansea, Glamorgan.
William Richard Bradford William Richard Bradford is a former photographer and handyman who is currently incarcerated in San Quentin Prison for the 1984 murders of his fifteen-year-old neighbor Tracey Campbell and barmaid Shari Miller. In July of 2006, Los Angeles Police released a compilation of photos found in Bradford's apartment in the 1980s, depicting fifty-four different women in 1980s style modelling poses.
William Richard Griffin William Richard Griffin (September 1, 1882 in Chicago, Illinois – March 18, 1944 in La Crosse, Wisconsin) was a Roman Catholic bishop. He was ordained to the Roman Catholic priesthood on May 25, 1907, for the Archdiocese of Chicago.
William Richardson (soldier) William Richardson distinguished himself in the Battle of Harlem Heights in the Revolutionary War. Colonel Richardson High School and Colonel Richardson Middle School in American Corner, Maryland, are named for him.
William Rimmer William Rimmer (20 February 1816-20 August 1879) was an American artist born in Liverpool, England. He was the son of a French refugee, who emigrated to Nova Scotia, where he was joined by his wife and child in 1818, and who in 1826 moved to Boston, where he earned a living as a shoemaker.
William Roache William "Bill" Roache MBE (born April 25, 1932 in Ilkeston, Derbyshire) is an English television actor, who plays the part of 'Ken Barlow' in the long-running soap opera, Coronation Street. He is the only remaining member of the original cast, having appeared in the first episode in 1960.
William Robert Broughton William Robert Broughton was a British naval officer in the late 18th century. As a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, he commanded the HMS Chatham as part of the voyage of exploration through the Pacific Ocean led by Captain George Vancouver in the early 1790s.
William Robert Button 'William Robert Button (3 December 1895- 15 April 1921) was a United States Marine Corporal awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions in killing Charlemagne Peralte on 31 October-1 November 1919. Second Lieutenant Herman H.
William Robert Fitzgerald Collis William Robert Fitzgerald Collis (1900 – 1975), an Irish doctor and writer worked for the Red Cross in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after its liberation by Allied troops. He was instrumental in bringing five orphaned children from the camp to Ireland in 1947, adopting two of these survivors.
William Robert Fountains Addison William Robert Fountains Addison VC, Order of St. George (Russia) (18 September, 1883—7 January, 1962) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Robert Graham William Graham was a Deputy Administrator and Acting Administrator of NASA during 1985 and 1986. It was on his watch as Acting Administrator that the Space Shuttle Challenger was launched in frigid weather, causing the O-Rings to fail and destroy the ship.
William Robert Grove Sir William Robert Grove (1811 – 1896) was a British chemist born in Swansea in Wales. In 1839, William Robert Grove developed the first fuel cell (which he called the gas voltaic battery), which produced electrical energy by combining hydrogen and oxygen.
William Roberts (hockey player) William Roberts holds four records in the Central Virginia Roller Hockey League and two goalie records in the Virginia Youth Hockey League. William Roberts was raised in the Richmond area and started playing hockey at five.
William Robertson Field Marshal Sir William Robert Robertson, 1st Baronet of Beaconsfield, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, DSO (29 January 1860 – 12 February 1933) was a British Field Marshal who served as Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS) from 1916 to 1918 during the First World War. He is apparently the only soldier in any army to manage the feat of rising from private soldier to Field Marshal.
William Robertson (historian) William Robertson (September 19, 1721 – June 11, 1793) was a Scottish historian and Principal of the University of Edinburgh. ("The thirty years during which (he) presided over the University perhaps represent the highest point in its history" according to D.
William Robertson (VC) William Robertson (VC, CBE) (February 27, 1865 - December 6, 1949) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
William Robertson Smith William Robertson Smith (8 November, 1846 – 31 March, 1894) was a Scottish orientalist, Old Testament scholar, professor of divinity, and minister of the Free Church of Scotland who is best known for his trial for heresy in the 1870's, following an article in the Encyclopædia Britannica. He is also known for his book Religion of the Semites, which is considered a foundational text in the comparative study of religion.
William Robinson (gardener) William Robinson (1838 - 1935) was a practical gardener and journalist whose ideas about "wild gardens" spurred the movement that is still recognized as the "English cottage garden," an outgrowth of the British Arts and Crafts movement.
William Rockhill Nelson William Rockhill Nelson (March 7, 1841 - April 13, 1915) founded The Kansas City Star in 1880. He was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he briefly owned The Sentinel (which became the Fort Wayne News Sentinel) before founding the Star with Samuel E.
William Rodgers, Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank William Thomas Rodgers, Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank, PC (born Liverpool October 28, 1928), usually known as William Rodgers but also often known as Bill Rodgers, was one of the "Gang of Four" of senior British Labour Party politicians who defected to form the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He subsequently helped to lead the SDP into the merger that formed the Liberal Democrats, and later served as that party's leader in the House of Lords.
William Rodriguez William RodrĂ­guez is a former janitor who was at the North Tower of the World Trade Center who pulled several people to safety during the September 11, 2001 attacks.He was honored at the White House] five times.
William Roger "Bill" Moss William Roger "Bill" Moss (September 17 1935 - August 2 2005), was a community leader and political activist in the Central Ohio area, and was recognized nationally for his efforts concerning educational matters and practices.
William Romaine William Romaine (born 1714 at Hartlepool; died 1795), evangelical divine of the Church of England, was author of works once held in much favour by the evangelicals, namely the trilogy The Life, the Walk, and the Triumph of Faith.
William Rootes, 1st Baron Rootes William Edward Rootes, 1st Baron Rootes GBE (17 August 1894–12 December 1964) was a noted Coventry motor manufacturer and the innovative Chairman of the Promotion Committee which founded the University of Warwick.
William Ross Ashby William Ross Ashby (September 6, 1903, London - November 15, 1972) was an English psychiatrist and a pioneer in the study of complex systems. Despite being widely influential within cybernetics, systems theory and, more recently, complex systems, he is not nearly as well known as many of the notable scientists his work has influenced including Herbert Simon, Norbert Wiener, Ludwig von Bertalanffy, Stafford Beer and Stuart Kauffman.
William Ross Macdonald William Ross Macdonald, PC , OC , CD , QC (December 25 1891 - May 28 1976), served as the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1968 to 1974, and as Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons from 1949 to 1953.
William Rotsler William "Bill" Rotsler (July 3, 1926 - October 8, 1997) was an American author of several science fiction novels and short stories; television and film novelizations; and a number of non-fiction works on a variety of topics, ranging from Star Trek to pornography. He was also an artist and sculptor, primarily in metal, and contributed to the art at the entrance to Los Angeles Police Department headquarters.
William Rowan Browne William Rowan Browne (11 December 1884 – 1 September 1975) was an Australian geologist who was born in Lislea, County Londonderry, Ireland. He travelled to Australia in 1904 due to tuberculosis, and tutored before enrolling at the University of Sydney.
William Rowan Hamilton Sir William Rowan Hamilton (August 4, 1805 – September 2, 1865) was an Irish mathematician, physicist, and astronomer who made important contributions to the development of optics, dynamics, and algebra. His discovery of quaternions is perhaps his best known investigation.
William Royer William Howard Royer (b. April 11, 1920) was born in Jerome, Idaho, went to Santa Clara University and Oklahoma State University and became a Republican US House Representative from California, serving from 1979 until 1981, having lost at the 1980 election.
William Ruckelshaus William Doyle Ruckelshaus (born July 24, 1932) is an attorney and civil servant in the United States. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Ruckleshaus served as the first head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, was subsequently acting director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and then Deputy Attorney General of the United States.
William Rudolf O'Donovan William Rudolf O'Donovan (1844-1920), an American sculptor, was born in Preston county, Virginia, on the 28th of March 1844. He had no technical art training, but after the Civil War, in which he served in the Confederate army, he opened a studio in New York City and became a well-known sculptor, especially of memorial pieces.
William Rufus Shafter William Rufus Shafter (October 16,1835 – November 12, 1906) was a major general in the United States Army, earning the Medal of Honor for gallantry in action during the American Civil War. He later took a prominent part in the Spanish-American War.
William Rush Merriam William Rush "Spooky" Merriam (July 26, 1849–February 18, 1931) was an American politician. He served in the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1883 and 1887 and was the Speaker of the House in 1887.
William Russell (actor) William Russell (born Russell Enoch on November 19, 1924 in Sunderland, England) is a British actor, mainly known for his television work. His son is Alfred Enoch, who plays Dean Thomas in the Harry Potter films.
William Russell (Kentucky) William Russell (March 6, 1758–July 3, 1825) was an American soldier, pioneer, and politician from Fayette County, Kentucky. He served in the Virginia state House of Representatives in 1790 and 1791 and in the Kentucky house in 1792, 1796-1780, 1802, and 1823.
William Ryan (lawyer) William Fitts Ryan (June 28, 1922-September 17, 1972) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a representative from New York in the United States House of Representatives from 1961 until his death in 1972.
William S. Andrews William Shankland Andrews, (born in Syracuse, Onondaga County, New York, September 25, 1858; died August 5, 1936), was a judge on the New York Court of Appeals (the highest court in New York) from 1917-1928, where he dissented from several opinions by noted fellow judge Benjamin Cardozo. These included dissents in Palsgraf v.
William S. Archer William Segar Archer (March 5, 1789– March 28, 1855) was an American farmer, lawyer, and politician born in and raised in Amelia County, Virginia. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates, and represented Virginia in both the United States House and Senate.
William S. Baring-Gould William Stuart Baring-Gould (1913–1967) was a noted Sherlock Holmes scholar, best known as the author of the influential 1962 fictional biography, Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street: A life of the world's first consulting detective.
William S. Clark Dr. William Smith Clark (July 31, 1825 - March 9, 1886) was a professor, Massachusetts State Senator, third president of the Massachusetts Agricultural College (now the University of Massachusetts Amherst) and first vice president of Sapporo Agricultural College (Japan)
William S. Gillies William S Gillies was an American artist. Born in 1911, he is best remembered as an illustrator for the covers of several books including the Ken Holt Mysteries, Nancy Drew Mysteries, and Hardy Boys Mysteries.
William S. King Colonel William Smith King (December 16, 1828 – February 24, 1900) was a United States Representative from Minnesota from March 4, 1875 to March 3, 1877. He engaged in a variety of other activities, including journalism and surveying.
William S. Smith William Stephens Smith (November 8, 1755 - June 10 1816) was a United States Representative from New York and a son-in-law of President John Adams, a brother-in-law of President John Quincy Adams and an uncle of Charles Francis Adams. Born on Long Island, he graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1774, studied law for a short time, and served in the Revolutionary Army as aide-de-camp to General John Sullivan in 1776.
William S. Taylor (politician) William S. Taylor (1795–1858) was an American politician that served in the Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas State Legislatures, and was Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives briefly in the Seventh Texas Legislature.
William S. U'Ren William Simon U'ren (January 10, 1859-March 5, 1949) was the father of Oregon's Initiative process. A progressive during the turn of the 19th century, he was instrumental in getting initiative, recall and referendum included in Oregon's government.
William Sampson (author) William Sampson is a dual British and Canadian national who was arrested on December 17, 2000 in Saudi Arabia. He was one of 8 people of British, Belgian and Canadian nationalities arrested on suspicion of being involved in planting and detonating a car bomb planted on a Blazer SUV in Riyadh that killed British engineer Christopher Rodway and injured his wife.

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