Samuel Carter

Samuel Carter (15 May 1805 – 31 January 1878) was a Member of Parliament for his native city of Coventry, and solicitor to two major railway companies (the London and North Western Railway and Midland Railway) for nearly four decades during the development of Britain's rail network. Life and family Born into a family of the Unitarian faith, his father Samuel Snr was the Coventry prison keeper for many years and his mother Jane was the daughter of Josiah Corrie Snr, a minister in Kenilworth. He attended the school of his uncle John Corrie FRS, who was long-time President of the Birmingham Philosophical Institution. Marrying Sir Francis Ronalds' youngest sister Maria in 1833, they had four children: Alexander, Hugh, John Corrie and Jane. In the 1855–1875 period, they resided at Battle in a substantial estate called Quarry Hill. Samuel died in London, and was buried in the family vault in Kenilworth. Railway solicitor Samuel had been articled to his uncle Josiah Corrie, a lawyer in Birmingham, and their partnership was appointed as solicitors to the proposed London & Birmingham Railway (L&BR) in 1830. They also acted as solicitors to various lines that were planned to connect other communities with the new trunkline. One was the Birmingham & Derby Railway (B&DR) to which Corrie & Carter was appointed in 1835. B&DR joined with other companies in 1844 to form the Midland Railway, with Carter being one of the solicitors to the amalgamation bill (Corrie having died).