William Curtis (January 11, 1746 – July, 7, 1799) English botanist and entomologist. Curtis began as an apothecary before turning his attention to botany and other natural history. Curtis was demonstrator of plants and Praefectus Horti at the Chelsea Physic Garden from 1771 to 1777. He established his own London Botanic Garden at Lambeth in 1779, moving to Brompton in 1789. In 1787 he began to publish “The Botanical Magazine; or Flower-Garden Displayed”. This had superb hand coloured illustrations by artists such as James Sowerby and Sydenham Edwards. This long-running botanical magazine is still published today.