{{Short description|Scottish businessman and meteorologist (1802–1888)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2017}} {{Use British English|date=September 2017}} thumb|4 Bellevue Crescent, Edinburgh '''Robert Mackay Smith''' FRSE (1802–1888) was a Scottish businessman, meteorologist and philanthropist. Glasgow University's '''Mackay Smith Prizes''' were founded by him in 1882.<ref>{{Cite web|title=University of Glasgow :: Story :: Prizes: Mackay Smith Prizes|url=https://universitystory.gla.ac.uk/award/?id=510|access-date=2021-05-10|website=universitystory.gla.ac.uk}}</ref> He was the Chairman of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce and a Director of the Commercial Bank of Scotland.
==Life== thumb|The grave of Robert MacKay Smith, Dean Cemetery, Edinburgh He was born in Glasgow on 24 May 1802 the son of Peter Smith, a flax merchant living at 76 Stirling Street<ref>Glasgow Post Office Directory 1803</ref> and his wife, Euphemia MacKay. He attended Glasgow University studying Sciences and graduated MA in 1815, aged only thirteen.
He moved to Leith in 1834 to work as a commission agent and lived and worked there for most of his life. He originally lived at 4 Windsor Street near the top of Leith Walk.<ref>Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1835-6</ref>
In 1855 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh his proposer being Charles Piazzi Smyth. He was a member of multiple scientific societies including the Meteorological Society of Scotland, the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, the Royal Scottish Society of Arts (serving as their president) and the Edinburgh Philosophical Society (Director 1851).<ref>{{cite book|title=Biographical Index of Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002|date=July 2006|publisher=The Royal Society of Edinburgh|isbn=0-902-198-84-X|url=https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp1.pdf|archive-date=24 January 2013|access-date=18 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124115814/http://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp1.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
He died on 4 April 1888 at his home, 4 Bellevue Crescent in Edinburgh<ref>Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1887-1888</ref> He is buried in one of the small south sections in Dean Cemetery in the west side of the city.
He never married and had no children.
==References== {{reflist}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Robert MacKay}} Category:1802 births Category:1888 deaths Category:Alumni of the University of Glasgow Category:Businesspeople from Glasgow Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Category:Scottish meteorologists Category:19th-century Scottish philanthropists Category:19th-century Scottish businesspeople
{{Scotland-business-bio-stub}} {{UK-scientist-stub}}