Samuel Best (1776-1859) was an excellent silversmith and clock maker who was a member of a family of fine craftsmen that immigrated to America in 1801. The father of Samuel Best, namely Thomas Best, Sr., came with his family to this country from Ilminster, England. The senior Best was a silversmith and clock maker and all three of his sons, Samuel, Robert, and Thomas, Jr., learned the trade from their father. The family came first to Philadelphia, but a year later, in 1802, moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. Samuel and his brother Thomas, along with a cousin, Henry Best, went on 10 Paris, Kentucky where Samuel entered into. a partnership with Thomas Phillips, also a silversmith who was already working in that town. The partnership lasted fur less than a year and Samuel returned to Cincinnati and opened a shop there, in a log house at the corner of Front and Walnut streets. Samuel Best married Eunice Winkler in December of 1804, and at least five children were born of that union. In 1812, Robert Best closed his shop in Hamilton, Ohio . and joined Samuel’s business as a partner. That partnership also lasted only a brief time, and by 1813 Samuel was again working alone. Samuel and Robert again became business partners in 1817, but the Best brothers seemingly were not destined to work together, fur in 1818 the partnership was dissolved. This was apparently Samuel’s last attempt to form a partnership. While in Cincinnati, Samuel Best advertised that he made or. sold a wide range of silver items, clocks, swords, dirks, and saddlery mountings, along with other items which one might expect to find in a provincial jewelry store of the period. Sometime in the year 1818, Samuel Best abandoned his shop in Cincinnati and moved westward to Rising Sun in Dearborn County, Indiana (now Ohio County). At that time the town lots for Rising Sun were being sold, and both Samuel and his brother Thomas bought property there. Whether Thomas actually moved to Rising Sun at chat time is unknown, but likely he joined his brother for a short time. Samuel Best continued the business of silversmithing, clockmaking and jewelry in Rising Sun. In addition, he continued to buy considerable real estate in the area. Some fourteen property transactions are .recorded for Samuel Best from 1819 to 1840. Several advertisements for Samuel Best were found, showing him to be actively engaged as a clockmaker and silversmith in Rising Sun. Silver of a style consistent with the period in which Samuel worked in Rising Sun is extant. The sugar tongs pictured herein are most definitely from Best’s Rising Sun period. Fine tall case docks too, made by Best, are known to be in the Rising Sun area. The 1850 Federal. Census for Ohio County lists Samuel Best, silversmith, who at that time was seventy four years of age. His assets were given as eight thousand dollars. Strangely, none of Samuel’s sons followed him in his profession. Son Robert advertised as a saddle harness and trunk maker, and Samuel, Jr., was known to have been in the tinning business. A lot has been written concerning the Best family and their work in Cincinnati, but practically nothing was known of Samuel after he left that city. The fact is that most of the silver bearing the name of S. Best was likely made in Rising Sun, for he was actively engaged as a silversmith there for at least twenty years.