John K. Smith (died 1845) was the founder of SmithKline as in GlaxoSmithKline, the leading pharmaceutical business.
Trained as a druggist, John K.Smith joined with his brother-in-law, John Gilbert, in 1830 to open a dispensing chemist at 296 North Second Street in Philadelphia.[1] Together they sold drugs, paints, varnish, chemicals and window glass.[1]
When John K. Smith decided to retire he handed the business on to his son, George K. Smith, who expanded it into a large international business.[1]
John K. Smith died in 1845.[1]