Robert William Innes Smith (1872-1933) was a graduate in medicine of Edinburgh University and a general practitioner for thirty three years in the Brightside district of Sheffield. His strong interest in medical history and art brought him some acclaim, and his study of English-speaking students of medicine at the University of Leyden, published in 1932, is regarded as a model of its kind. Locally in Sheffield Innes Smith was highly respected as both medical man and scholar: his pioneer work in the organisation of ambulance services and first-aid stations in the larger steel works made him many friends.