Adam Smith

AKA:
The Father of Economics
Birth Name:
Adam Smith
Birth Date:
June 16, 1723
Birth Place:
Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland
Death Date:
July 17, 1790
Place of Death:
Panmure House, Edinburgh, Scotland
Age:
67
Cause of Death:
Decay
Cemetery Name:
Canongate Kirkyard
Claim to Fame:
Business and Finance
Adam Smith, a graduate of the University of Glasgow and at Balliol College, Oxford, was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Also known as "The Father of Economics" or "The Father of Capitalism" he wrote two classic works, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The latter, often abbreviated as The Wealth of Nations, is considered his magnum opus and the first modern work of economics. Upon his death, he was laid to rest at Canongate Kirkyard in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Fun Fact

Adam Smith has been described as someone who “had a large nose, bulging eyes, a protruding lower lip, a nervous twitch, and a speech impediment”. Smith is said to have acknowledged his looks at one point, saying, “I am a beau in nothing but my books.” Therefore Smith rarely sat for portraits and so almost all depictions of him created during his lifetime were drawn from memory.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Canongate Kirkyard

153 Canongate

Edinburgh, , EH8 8BN

Scotland

Europe

Map:

Cemetery map of Canongate Kirkyard in Edinburgh Scotland

Grave Location:

Adam Smith Crypt

Grave Location Description

Across the street from the Edinburgh Museum is the entrance to the Canongate Kirk (Presbyterian Church). Standing in front of the church look to your left and walk 50 feet to the crypt of the Father of Economics, Adam Smith.

Grave Location GPS

55.95158763731476, -3.179891535719773

Photos:

[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]

FAQ's

Adam Smith was born on June 16, 1723.

Adam Smith was born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland.

Adam Smith died on July 17, 1790.

Adam Smith died in Panmure House, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Adam Smith was 67.

The cause of death was Decay.

Adam Smith's grave is in Canongate Kirkyard

Read More About Adam Smith:

Videos Featuring Adam Smith:

See More:

Cornelius Vanderbilt

popular name: Cornelius Vanderbilt

date_of_death: January 4, 1877

age: 82

cause_of_death: Exhaustion and chronic health issues

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: The Vanderbilt name is synonymous with America’s Gilded Age. Upon their deaths, “Commodore” Cornelius Vanderbilt, who established the family’s fortune, and his son William H., who doubled it in just a few years, were the wealthiest men in the United States, if not the world. The steamboat and railroad companies they founded and led played a major role in the development of New York City and State. When he died in 1877 in his mansion at 10 Washington Place, Vanderbilt left a fortune of $105 million. He willed the bulk of it—$95 million, more than was possessed by the United States Treasury—to his oldest son, William Henry Vanderbilt.

George S. Parker

popular name: George S. Parker

date_of_death: September 26, 1952

age: 85

cause_of_death: Natural Causes

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Founder of the game company Parker Brothers, Inc which produced a multitude of card and board games including Monopoly, Clue, Sorry!, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, and the notorious paranormal-oriented Ouija board. Despite popular opinion, George Parker did not invent Monopoly although it is often attributed to him.

Sumner Redstone

popular name: Sumner Redstone

date_of_death: August 11, 2020

age: 96

cause_of_death: Natural causes

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Redstone was born in a Boston tenement to a father who changed the family name from Rothstein to Redstone and built a regional movie-theater chain. After a short career as an attorney (he graduated from Harvard and Harvard Law), Redstone joined his father's company, National Amusements, in 1954. He became CEO in 1967 and steadily grew the company with profitable investments in studios. Sumner was the founder and chairman of the second incarnation of Viacom which was dissolved in 2019 (a year before Redstone's death) and was the majority owner and chairman of the National Amusements theater chain. Through National Amusements, Redstone, up until his death, was, and his family remains, majority voting shareholder of mass media conglomerate ViacomCBS, in turn, the parent company of the Paramount Pictures film studio, the CBS television network, and various cable networks. According to Forbes, as of April 2020, he was worth US$2.6 billion.

Back to Top