William G. Luke[1] (28 May 1829 — 24 November 1912)[2] was an American businessman who founded the West Virginia Pulp & Paper Company, the forerunner of Meadwestvaco Corporation, in 1888 at Piedmont, West Virginia and Luke, Maryland, United States.
The son of John, a master paper maker at Crook of Devon, Luke came to America from Scotland in 1852.
[5] Luke worked as the manager of the Jessup & Moore Paper Company in Wilmington, Delaware, from 1862 to 1898.
The price of rags had skyrocketed due to demand during the Civil War, and other viable sources of pulp fibers were being sought.
[5] MeadWestvaco was led by successive members of the Luke family to the sixth generation,[13] until its 2015 merger with RockTenn formed the WestRock company.