food manufacturer, philanthropist, b. Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England. He was educated in private schools, served several years as an apprenticed harness maker, and in 1869 migrated to the U.S. and to Wisconsin, where he settled in Racine. There he married the daughter of J. A. Horlick, Racine dealer in lime stucco and cement. In 1873 he moved to Chicago where, with his brother, James, he began the manufacture of food products. In 1876, when the company moved to Racine, William Horlick began to experiment with the possibility of creating a dried-milk product. In 1887 his efforts succeeded when he produced dried milk combined with an extract of malted barley and wheat; the product was registered under the trademark of Malted Milk. The success of this product, which reduced milk to a powdered form that could be easily stored and transported, gave Horlick a national and world market. In 1889 a branch of the company was opened under James Horlick in New York City, and in 1890 a branch was established in England. New plants, constructed at Racine in 1902 and 1905, reflected William's taste for English architectural style. In 1906 the firm name was changed from Horlick's Food Co. to Horlick's Malted Milk Co., with William Horlick serving as treasurer until his brother's death in 1921, at which time he became president. The success of the company enabled William Horlick to achieve a widespread reputation as a philanthropist in the Racine area, and he also contributed financially to the first Byrd expedition to the South Pole and the Amundsen expedition to the North Pole. After the death of William Horlick, control of the firm passed to his son, ALEXANDER JAMES HORLICK, b. Racine, who had entered the business after his graduation from Racine College in 1893. He became president of Horlick's Malted Milk Co. in 1936, and was chairman of the board when control of the firm passed to Horlick's Ltd. of England in 1945. He was instrumental in establishing Horlick's Racine Airport, was a director of the Racine Journal-Times Co., a member of the board of trustees of St. Luke's Hospital in Racine (1940-1950), and a regent of the Univ. of Wisconsin (1910-1925). A Republican, he was mayor of Racine (1907-1911). After 1945 he lived in semiretirement in Racine until his death. View more information elsewhere at wisconsinhistory.org.
Dict. Amer. Biog., Suppl. 2; Who's Who in Amer., 15 (1928); F. L. Holmes, et al., eds., Wis. (5 vols., Chicago, 1946); F. S. Stone, ed., Racine . . . and Racine Co. (2 vols., Chicago, 1916); Milwaukee Journal, Sept. 25, 1936; Racine Journal-Times, June 6, 1950.
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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]
