Bowyer, William, 1663-1737

William Bowyer (1699-1777) was the son of printer William Bowyer (1663-1737). He was placed by his father as a sizar at St. John's College, Cambridge, in 1716. Without finishing his degree, Bowyer began working for his father in 1722. Bowyer often printed scholarly and literary works. In 1729 he was appointed to print votes of the House of Commons, and in 1761 was appointed printer for the Royal Society. He also wrote and published some of his own works. A notable apprentice of Bowyers's was John Nichols, whom Bowyer later made a full partner.

William Bowyer the elder set up as a master printer in 1699 and his son, William Bowyer the younger, formally joined the business in 1722. After serving for many years as master printer, he succeeded to the ownership and control of the business on his father's death and ran it until his.

Own death in 1777. From 1759 on John Nichols served as his apprentice and from 1766 as his partner, inheriting the business on Bowyer's death. Nichols appears to have closed the Bowyer accounts in 1781. Joseph Iliffe, a hosier, was a friend of Bowyer the younger who closed out his accounts in the years immediately following his death.