William Weightman

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William Weightman (September 30, 1813 - August 25, 1904) was a chemical manufacturer and, by the early 1890s, one of the largest landowners in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Weightman was born in Waltham, Lincolnshire, England and came to the United States at the age of 16 (in 1829) on the suggestion of his uncle, chemist John Farr, founder of the firm of Farr and Kunzi, the first manufacturers of sulfate of quinine in the United States.

Upon Kunzi's retirement in 1836, Farr partnered with Thomas Powers and Weightman to establish Farr, Powers and Weightman, manufacturing chemists. When Farr died in 1847, the business became Powers and Weightman, chemical manufacturers. Weightman was responsible for introducing quinine to the United States.

He amassed a large fortune through shrewd investments, derived from his manufacturing enterprise. His fortune is considered one of the 100 largest ever amassed in the United States, adjusting for inflation. [1]



[edit] References

  • Philadelphia - A History of the City and Its People. Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer (Philadelphia, 1911).
  • James Foss. Willis Gaylord Hale and Philadelphia's Rebellion of the Picturesque: 1880-1890. Masters Thesis, Penn State University, 1964.

[edit] Source