Samuel Dennis Warren (September 13, 1817 – May 11, 1888) was an American paper magnate and the founder of the S. D. Warren Paper Mill in

Westbrook, Maine Westbrook is a city in Cumberland County, Maine, United States and a suburb of Portland, Maine, Portland. The population was 20,400 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the fastest-growing city in Maine between 2010 and 2020. ...

. Noted for his benevolence and paternalism, Warren built a commercial block adjacent to the mill, which is named in his honor.

Early life

Warren was born in 1817 in

Grafton, Massachusetts Grafton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,664 at the 2020 census. The town consists of the North Grafton, Grafton, and South Grafton geographic areas, each with a separate ZIP Code. Incorporated ...

Career

In the 1850s, Warren began working for his father's Boston-based rag business, when nearly all paper was made from rags. With an increase in the need for paper, not least from the government during the American Civil War, the rag trade dwindled significantly. In 1853, Warren opened his first paper mill, the S. D. Warren Paper Mill, on the

Presumpscot River The Presumpscot River () is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed June 30, 2011 river located in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. It is the main outlet of Sebago ...

in today's

. Recognizing the importance of wood pulp, Warren purchased the Forest Paper Company in Yarmouth in 1873.

Personal life

Warren had four children, all of whom were well-known in their fields. A son,

Samuel D. Warren II Samuel Dennis Warren II (January 25, 1852 – February 18, 1910) was an American lawyer and businessman from Boston, Massachusetts. Early life and family Childhood and education Warren was born in Boston on January 25, 1852, the son of Susan Cor ...

, was an attorney who co-published an influential article entitled '' The Right to Privacy'' in 1890. Daughter

Cornelia Warren Cornelia Warren (March 21, 1857 – June 4, 1921) was an American farmer and an educational and social service philanthropist, widely known for her investment in social improvement projects. She was a trustee of Wellesley College, bought the loc ...

was an American farmer and an educational and social service philanthropist. Son

Henry Clarke Warren Henry Clarke Warren (November 18, 1854 – January 3, 1899) was an American scholar of Sanskrit and Pali. He was a co-founder of the ''Harvard Oriental Series''. Biography Born in Boston, Warren was a son of Susan Cornelia Clarke (1825–1901) a ...

was an American scholar of Sanskrit and Pali. Edward Perry Warren was an art collector and the author.

Fiske Warren Frederick Fiske Warren (July 3, 1862 – February 2, 1938) was a successful paper manufacturer, fine arts doyen, United States tennis champion of 1893, and major supporter of Henry George's single tax system which he helped develop in Harv ...

was also involved in the paper business.

Death

Warren died in Boston in 1888, aged 70.''Discover Maine: Midcoast & Casco Bay'', volume 34, issue 5 (2025), p. 12 He was interred in

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery, located in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, is the first rural or garden cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brahmins, and is a National Historic Landmark. Dedicated in ...

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Warren, Samuel Dennis 1817 births 1888 deaths Businesspeople from Boston Businesspeople in the pulp and paper industry Westbrook, Maine Pulp and paper industry in Maine