William Farish is an American businessman and a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom (2001-2004). His father, William Stamps Farish, Jr., was killed in an airplane accident during World War II. He is the grandson of William Stamps Farish II, who was President of Standard Oil from 1937 to 1942. He owns W.S. Farish & Co., a trust company based in Houston, Texas.