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William Spencer (c. 1751 – c. 1816) was an English mathematical instrument maker of the 18th and 19th centuries. After he apprenticed with instrument maker Richard Rust, Spencer entered into a partnership with Samuel Browning to form the company of Spencer & Browning. When Ebenezer Rust joined the partnership, the resultant firm was known as Spencer, Browning & Rust. William Spencer and his partners manufactured navigational instruments for both domestic and international markets. ==Apprenticeship== William Spencer, son of Anthony Spencer, was born in around 1751 in England.〔 On 4 November 1766, at the approximate age of fifteen, William Spencer signed a seven-year contract of indenture (''pictured'') to Richard Rust, "Citizen and Grocer" of London, England. The contract indicated that his father Anthony Spencer was a shoemaker of the parish of Church Minshull in the County Palatine of Chester, now simply known as Cheshire. In consideration of the sum of ten pounds paid by William's father, Richard Rust agreed to instruct his apprentice, as well as provide him with the necessities of life, including food, drink, clothing, and lodging.〔 The agreement also outlined a strict code of conduct for the apprentice. Among other things, the contract stipulated that the apprentice could not: "waste the Goods of his said Master, nor lend them unlawfully to any. He shall not commit Fornication, nor contract Matrimony, within the said Term. He shall not play at Cards, Dice, Tables, or any other unlawful Games, whereby his said Master may have any loss. With his own Goods or others, during the said Term, without Licence of his said Master he shall neither buy nor sell. He shall not haunt Taverns, or Playhouses, nor absent himself from his said Master's Service Day nor Night unlawfully."〔 The agreement also indicated that Richard Rust was responsible for paying a duty to the Stamp Office, usually within one month of the date of the contract.〔 William Spencer's master Richard Rust was a well-known mathematical instrument maker who ran a busy shop on Tower Hill in London. As in this case, a mathematical instrument maker often specialized in navigational instruments. Rust himself had apprenticed, and received his freedom in 1752.〔 In William Spencer's contract of indenture, Richard Rust was referred to as a Grocer.〔 This signified that he was a member of the Grocers' Company.〔 Richard Rust died in around 1785; his will was proved in December 1785.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「William Spencer (navigational instrument maker)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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