Thomas William Keates

Thomas William Keates (November 1817 - 7 May 1882) was a practical chemist who worked for a number of public bodies.

Born in Poole, Dorset, he was the son of a seaman. He moved to London in 1837 and established himself as an analytical chemist based at Chatham Place in the City of London. He was an associate of Louis Daguerre and held a number of patents including one for the distillation of turpentine.

In 1870 he was appointed Consulting Chemist and Superintending Gas Examiner to the Metropolitan Board of Works. He was Fellow of the Institute of Chemistry and in 1877 was elected a Member of the Society of Arts.

He died at his home "The Acacias", East Dulwich, aged 64.