William Smith Kimball (1837- 1895) was a college trained engineer, a highly skilled mechanic, an entrepreneur with a keen sense of social awareness, and a tobacconist who understood the need to advertise. After serving with the US Navy during the Civil War converting old whale boats into gunboats, Kimball bought a share of Henry Suggett's Rochester, NY tobacco company. Suggett retired in 1867, and the business renamed the Wm. S. Kimball & Company.