Frederick Smeeton Williams

Frederick Smeeton Williams (1829 – 26 October 1886) was an English minister in the Congregational Church, best known for his books on the early history of UK railways.

From 1861, he lived and worked as a tutor at the Nottingham Congregational Institute, alongside its director John Brown Paton.

Williams enjoyed a deserved reputation as a pioneer railway historian.

The book gives a detailed account of the early history of the railways in Britain and explains at length the construction of embankments, cuttings, tunnels and viaducts.

He also wrote a book on astronomy, "The Wonders of the Heavens" (1862), and "Nottingham Past and Present" (1878), in addition to several religious pamphlets.