William Smellie (encyclopedist)
William Smellie | |
|---|---|
Smellie, by Henry Bryan Hall | |
| Born | 1740 |
| Died | 24 June 1795 Edinburgh |
| Resting place | Greyfriars Kirkyard, Edinburgh 55°56′48″N 3°11′32″W / 55.94667°N 3.19222°W |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Education | Duddingston parish school High School, Edinburgh |
| Alma mater | University of Edinburgh |
| Occupation(s) | Printer, editor, naturalist, antiquary |
| Employer(s) | Apprentice, Hamilton, Balfour & Neil, printers, 1752 Substitute lecturer, botany, University of Edinburgh |
| Known for | Editor of the Encyclopædia Britannica First Edition |
| Spouse | Jean Robertson (m. 1763) |
| Parent(s) | Alexander Smellie, architect, Edinburgh |
| Notes | |
Member of the Edinburgh Philosophical Society, thereby becoming a founding fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh upon the Philosophical Society receiving its royal charter in 1783 Founder of the Newtonian Club (1760) | |
William Smellie (1740–1795) was a Scottish printer who edited the first edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. He was also a naturalist and antiquary. He was a joint founder of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, co-founder of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, and a friend of Robert Burns.