Harold Samuel, Baron Samuel of Wych Cross (23 April 1912 - 28 August 1987) was the founder of Land Securities, one of the United Kingdom's largest property companies.
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Born in Finchley and educated at Mill Hill School and the College of Estate Management at Lincoln's Inn Fields, Harold Samuel initially trained to be a surveyor.[1]
He established himself as an estate agent but then in 1944 he acquired Land Securities Investment Trust, a small property concern owning three modest properties.[1] After World War II he focused on securing bomb sites in Plymouth, Exeter, Hull, Coventry and Bristol and redeveloping them.[1] He built the business into one of the largest companies on the London Stock Exchange.[1]
He was knighted in 1963[2] and became a peer in 1972.[3] He died in 1987.[1]
Harold Samuel was an avid art collector: his collection of Dutch paintings was donated to the Mansion House Art Collection after his death.[4] He also became a Fellow of Magdalene College, Cambridge[1] and University College, London.[1]
He married Edna Nedis in 1936 and they went on to have three daughters.[1]