 His grandfather Joshua Beetham Sr established 'Beetham Wine and Spirits' merchants which lasted for five generations.William established his reputation as a society portraitist, firstly in England by painting portraits (oil on canvas) of noble dignitary such as the Reverend Nathaniel Bond and the former Prime Minister F. J. Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich (1843).He exhibited frequently at the Royal Academy Of Art, London and travelled overseas to paint in Hamburg, Copenhagen and at the Court of the Tsar in St. Petersburg.