Samuel William Copley (21 October 1859[1] – 4 or 5 November 1937) was an English artisan who made a fortune in land deals in Western Australia and returned to England, where he continued to be involved in business.

In 1882, aged 23, he left for Pontypridd, Wales, where he practised hairdressing and made extra money by trading in such lines as boots, furniture,[3] and musical instruments.

His savings from England amounted to £400, which he invested in local businesses, but failed to make a profit,[6] losing substantially on silver shares when Broken Hill mines were being developed.

In 1900 with Ben Copley[4] and James Patterson (died 11 July 1924), he purchased the Ord River cattle station, which in 1912 they sold to the Vestey brothers for £250,000.

Also in 1900, in conjunction with R. T. Robinson, Copley and his brother purchased 730 acres (300 ha) of the Mount Lawley estate which they sub-divided into quarter-acre blocks, yielding a vast profit[18] and incidentally triggering Perth's building boom which began around 1905.

[19] Copley had sold his fine house at Mount Lawley[20] after the government compulsorily acquired the ferry company's docklands, and in September 1913 he left for England.