William Marsh Rice was one of the first organizers of the railroad for the Houston and Great Northern Railroad company. He was joined by Ebenezar B. Nichols, W. J. Hutchins, H.D. Taylor, and B. A. Shepherd, and Moses Taylor. A known merchant and financier who was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, he moved to Houston, Texas after the panic of 1837. After gaining profits from a job at the Milan Hotel where he furnished and served liquor in the establishment, he eventually started his own company by the name of William Rice and Company in 1856. Before William Rice and Company, he also founded the Houston and Galveston Navigation Company in 1851 along with other investors. | Source: https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/rice-william-marshDownload Original File
