The Inverclyde Bequest Fund was established over one hundred and ten years ago. Its aim was to distribute annually the income of the fund to merchant seamen charities and aged and infirm seamen, specifically in the following manner:
- Seamen and seamen charities in Scotland – 2/5 share
- Seamen and seamen charities in Liverpool and Manchester – 1/5 share
- Seamen and seamen charities in Belfast – 1/5 share
- Seamen and seamen charities in New York and Boston – 1/5 share.
The bequest was made by the second Baron Inverclyde, George Arbuthnot Burns. The Burns family had long been associated with merchant shipping, the family firm being G and J Burns, established by the second Baron’s grandfather. They were also involved with the founding of the Cunard line and had a family connection to David Macbrayne, a co-founder of what eventually became Caledonian Macbrayne or Calmac as they are currently known.
The Burns Family
The Burns family can be traced back, at least, to Doctor John Burn of the school at Airth, who married Jennet Young on the 4th March 1741.[i] They had one child, a son John, who was born on the 19th February 1744.[ii]
John matriculated at Glasgow University in 1766[iii] and four years later became assistant minister to the Rev. Laurence Hill of Barony Church. On Hill’s death in 1773 he was chosen as his successor being ordained there on the 26th May 1774.[iv] He was awarded an D.D. degree by Aberdeen University in 1808[v] and remained minister at Barony until his death in 1839.[vi]
He married Elizabeth Stevenson in January 1775 and in due course they had nine children, seven sons and two girls (both named Elizabeth).[vii] Another source claims ten children, a third daughter also called Elizabeth being born in 1788 [viii] This last daughter’s birth however I have not been able to confirm. Four sons survived into adulthood, all of whom had distinguished careers. The last born Elizabeth reached adulthood and married David Macbrayne, more of which later.
It’s the youngest son George and his descendants that are of interest to this research however the other three sons are worthy of comment.
John Burns, the eldest child was born in 1775.[ix] In due course he was to become the first Regius Professor of Surgery at Glasgow University. He began his career in medicine when licensed by the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, becoming an apothecary and surgeon’s clerk at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in 1792.[x] In 1796 he became a member of the Faculty[xi] and in 1797 he began giving private lectures on anatomy, surgery and midwifery from rooms in Virginia Street. In 1799 he became Professor of Anatomy and Surgery at the newly established Anderson College’s medical school in addition to continuing his private classes.[xii] He was joined by his brother Allan in these classes who at the age of sixteen, was directing the use of the dissecting rooms involved with the anatomy lectures.[xiii]
He remained in that position until 1815 when he became Regius Professor, nominated for the position by the University Chancellor the Duke of Montrose. The University conferred on him the degrees of C.M. (surgery) and M.D. in 1817 and 1828 respectively. He remained in the Regius Chair and continued with his private work for the rest of his life although his anatomy activity had to cease as he had become involved in a body snatching controversy.[xiv] He wrote a number of medical text books perhaps the most well known being ‘Principles of Midwifery’, published in 1809, [xv] and in 1830 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (F.R.S.).[xvi]
He married Isabella Duncan in 1801 and they had four children, Isabella dying shortly after the birth of the fourth child Allan.[xvii]
He died on the 18th June 1850 when the paddle steamer the ‘Orion’ sank off Portpatrick on its way to Glasgow from Liverpool.[xviii] Ironically the ship belonged to G & J Burns Ltd, the shipping company established and owned by his brothers George and James.[xix]
Allan Burns, the fourth child was born in 1781[xx]. He was also the second boy to be called Allan although with a slightly different spelling. His career paralleled John’s to some extent in that he became a renowned anatomist and medical writer. He apparently began his medical career working with his brother from the age of fourteen. As indicated above he joined with his him in his private lectures and in due course took on the anatomy classes from him when he was prevented by the city authorities from carrying out anatomical activity (the body snatching issue).
In 1804 he went to London intending to join the Army Medical Service and in December of that year he obtained the necessary qualification for membership of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. However, he did not pursue his military objective but went instead to St Petersburg on the recommendation of a Dr Creighton, to set up an ‘English plan’ hospital at the request of Empress Catherine. After an initial trial period of six months he returned to Glasgow put of by the pomposity and barbarism of Russian culture.[xxi]
He re-joined his brother John in his lectures and it was during this period he took on the anatomy classes following his brother’s ‘grave robbing’ problems. Like John he wrote a number of medical text books and between them the brothers created a large collection of mummified body parts which in the fullness of time ended up in the University of Maryland.[xxii]
Unfortunately, he was not to enjoy a long life practising his medical skills. He died unmarried age thirty two, on the 29th June 1813.[xxiii]
James Burns was the eighth child born in 1789.[xxiv] Commerce and shipping, not medicine, along with his brother George, was to be his professional occupation. Initially they set up as general merchants in Glasgow in 1818.[xxv] By 1824 the business was located in Miller street, as general merchants at number 49, and as agents for Liverpool Traders at number 45, employing David Hutcheson there, whom we will meet again. At number 39 were the Liverpool Shipping offices, the brothers listed as agents. At the Liverpool end of this enterprisee the agents and owners of the business were Mathie and Theakstone, the partnership owning six sailing vessels, the Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Mersey and the Java.[xxvi]
He and brother George continued to expand their shipping interests, adding Northern Ireland destinations to their routes. In many respects they were like the Burrell brothers George and William although the prime mover in the Burns’ shipping business was George whilst James remained more of a merchant. By 1839 they had met Samuel Cunard which subsequently led to the formation of the Cunard Line in 1840. There is much to explore re the Burns brother’s shipping businesses which I’ll continue with when discussing George Burns.
Around 1839 James purchased the estate of Kilmahew in Dunbartonshire having previously bought the neighbouring estate of Bloomhill. As he got older he became more interested in estate improvement eventually retiring from business to devote his time to that activity.[xxvii]
He married Margaret Smith in 1825[xxviii] but the marriage was short lived as she died in 1830 of consumption[xxix]. His second wife was Margaret Shortridge whom he married in 1835[xxx], both marriages being performed by his father John. They had one child John William Burns born in 1837.[xxxi] Margaret Shortridge also pre deceased him dying in 1860[xxxii], James died at Kilmahew Castle in 1871.[xxxiii]
George Burns
The grandfather of George Arbuthnot Burns, was born in the Barony parish on the 10th December 1795.[xxxiv] His schooling began privately with a Mr. Angus as his tutor in grammar, simultaneously attending a writing school, tutored by a Mr. Stevenson. Following this preparatory education, he then attended the Grammar School (which became the High School of Glasgow) leaving there, after circa seven years, in 1812.[xxxv]
His first employment was with the New Lanark Cotton Spinning Company which had been started by David Dale in 1784. His role in the main seems to have been as messenger to various banks including Robert Carrick’s Ship Bank. During this time, he also involved himself with ‘recreational’ studies, attending lectures on chemistry at Glasgow University.[xxxvi]
In 1816 his father John was admitted a Guild Brother and Burgess of Glasgow, George becoming a Burgess on the same day through his father.[xxxvii]
He left New Lanark in 1818 and for a short while worked unpaid as a clerk for Andrew Grant and Co. before joining with his brother James later that year to establish their general merchants business. George was the more vigorous and commercially minded of the brothers and travelled all over the UK, including Northern Ireland, in pursuit of business. These travels resulted in him meeting a number of individuals who in due course would result in the nature of the brother’s business activity moving towards shipping.[xxxviii]
One such individual was Hugh Matthie who along with Theakstone, as previously mentioned, ran six sailing vessels between Glasgow and Liverpool. Mathie and Theakstone’s agents in Glasgow had been John and Alexander Kidd. However, during 1824 both of these gentlemen died leaving Matthie looking for a new agency . George Burns pursued this opportunity with Matthie which led to G. and J. Burns becoming Matthie’s Glasgow agents. It was during this time that David Hutcheson, an employee of the Kidd brothers, joined the Burns company having been recommended by Matthie. Not long afterwards Theakstone decided to retire and George Burns bought his share of the six sailing vessels thereby gaining a 50% ownership of his first shipping line. Thereafter James generally ran the merchants business under the name J. and G. Burns whilst George ran the shipping business under G. and J. Burns.[xxxix]
George very early on was keen to use steamships rather than sailing smacks and it was shortly after his partnership with Matthie was established that they began their routes to Northern Ireland, initially to Belfast in 1824 then to Londonderry and Larne using wooden paddle steamers. The first was the 100hp, 296 ton ’Fingal’ which went into service in 1824, followed by the ‘Eclipse’, the ‘Belfast’ and the ‘Rapid’ in 1825.[xl]
He was also determined to employ steam ships on the other routes that G. and J. Burns had an interest in, either as agents or owners. To that end he devised a plan to use steam ships on the Glasgow to Liverpool route which was at that time serviced by a fleet of eighteen sailing smacks. Fundamentally his plan was to remove as many of these smacks as possible from the route replacing them with steam ships.
As indicated previously he owned six of these vessels along with Matthie, competitors James and Thomas Martin were agents for a company also owning six. After some haggling and persuasion, the Burns, Mattie, Martin ‘consortium’ won the day and became joint owners of the twelve smacks which they then sold off. A partnership was set up with the company being known in Liverpool as ‘Matthie and Martin’ and in Glasgow as ‘G. and J. Burns and J. Martin’.[xli]
The first steamship of the new company was the ‘Glasgow’ a 280 ton,100 hp wooden paddle steamer whose maiden voyage to Liverpool was on the 13th March 1829. It was followed very quickly by two other wooden paddle steamers, the ‘Ailsa Craig’ similar in size and power, and in 1830 by the larger ’Liverpool’ whose tonnage was 397 ton and was powered by a 150hp engine.[xlii]
Other routes which G. and J. Burns were involved with all eventually were serviced by steamers, including the Glasgow and Highland (1832) all paddle with one exception the ‘Loch Fine’ in 1847 which was screw driven, the Glasgow and Firth of Clyde (1846) all paddle, and the Mediterranean /Le Havre (1853) all screw driven.[xliii]
In 1851 the Highland shipping activity was taken over by David Hutcheson, their employee from the early days, and his brother Alexander. They were joined by the Burns’ nephew David Macbrayne,[xliv] the son of their sister Elizabeth and David Macbrayne who had married in 1810.[xlv] So began the journey to the Caledonia Macbrayne shipping line.
In the midst of this George’s greatest venture was to occur, namely his involvement with the founding of the Cunard Line. Before I deal with that it is perhaps appropriate at this juncture to say something about his family life.
On the 10th June 1822 he married Jane Cleland in the Barony Church, the ceremony being performed by his father[xlvi]. Jane was the daughter of James Cleland, the Superintendent of Public Works in Glasgow. Cleland was a well known chronicler of Glasgow inhabitants, including censuses of Glasgow in 1819, 1821 and 1831, and associated statistics[xlvii] and is responsible for the current layout of Glasgow Green which was established between 1816 and 1826.[xlviii] There is also a tenement building opposite the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall called the Cleland Testimonial which was designed by David Hamilton and built in 1836 by public subscription in recognition of his service to the city. Cleland lived in the building until he died in 1840.[xlix]
George and Jane had seven children, three boys and four girls, only three of whom survived into adulthood. They were, his heir John, and father of George Arbuthot Burns, who was born on the 1st July 1829,[l] James who was born on the 28th of July 1832[li] and their first born Margaret who was born on the 10th August 1824.[lii] Margaret died relatively young in 1854 having been married for five years, leaving her husband and three young children.[liii]
The Cunard Line
In 1838 the Admiralty were interested in establishing a steamship mail service between Britain, Canada and the United States. To that end invitations to tender to provide that service were sent to a number of shipping organisations, including G and J Burns. It seems that initially George was disinclined to get involved in this Atlantic activity however that was to change.[liv]
Samuel Cunard, a Nova Scotian born in 1788, became aware of the desire to set up a steamship based mail service across the Atlantic and decided to apply . He travelled to Britain early in 1839 and by the 11th of February had submitted his tender to the Admiralty.
The essence of his tender was as follows:
“To provide steamboats of not less than 300hp to convey mail between Halifax (Nova Scotia) and England plus steamboats of not less than 150hp to distribute the mail locally.”
His tender also stated his ships would be ready by the 1st May 1840 and that the cost to the Admiralty of running the service was to be £55,000 per annum, the contract to run for ten years.
He then met the Scottish ship builder Robert Napier and agreed a contract with him, signed on the 18th March, for three ships, each of 960 tons and 375hp, to cost £32,000 per ship.
The Admiralty response was positive and the contract with them was signed on the 4th May 1839. It was to be for seven years, with two sailings per month beginning on the 4th June 1840, and each vessel would carry a naval officer. In addition, each ship should be ready at any time to carry four naval officers and ten ratings.
Whilst the contract negotiations had been going on Napier had come to the conclusion that for the service to be carried out all year round and in all weather conditions, larger and more powerful ships would be required, without which the venture would fail. When Cunard indicated that he had no more capital to invest Napier offered to put him in touch with other merchants who might support the venture.
One such individual was James Donaldson of the City of Glasgow Steam Packet Company which had merged with G. and J. Burns around 1830. The company had been set up by Donaldson and David MacIver to compete with Burns on a number of his routes but had not been particularly successful. The terms of the merger were that Burns would have three fifths of the revenue generated by the new company and control of the business, Donaldson and MacIver two fifths.
A meeting between Donaldson, Cunard, Burns and MacIver was held on the 10th May to discuss the possibility of additional capital being secured, with MacIver expressing his opposition. The next morning a further meeting took place, less Donaldson, during which agreement in principle seems to have been achieved. However, Burns stated the project was so large that other investors would be needed to raise the required capital and that would take time, he thought around a month.
In the event it took four days to raise the money and a contract was drawn up with Burns and MacIver having a half share in the mail contract and in the steam ships for an investment of £270,000. The name of the new business was the ’British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company’, the precursor to the Cunard Line. A co-partnery, called ‘The Glasgow Proprietary in the British and North American Steam Packets’ was also established between Burns, MacIver and the eighteen other investors that had helped provide the funds. The Admiralty also agreed to increase what they would pay for the service to £60,000 per annum.[lv]
Four wooden paddle steamers were then built as per the Napier specification, each around 1200 tons and 440hp, the first of which was the ‘Britannia’ to be followed by the ‘Acadia’ the ‘Caledonia’ and the ‘Columbia’.[lvi]
The ‘Britannia’ was built by Robert Duncan of Port Glasgow and was launched on the 5th February 1840. She made her maiden voyage on the 4th July arriving in Boston on the 19th, her entry into service late by about a month.[lvii] The build of the other ships was also behind plan, the second of which being delivered late autumn, the third in November, with the fourth in January of the following year.
Consequentially further discussions with the Admiralty led to an agreement that the twice monthly sailings would be delayed until the autumn and that during the winter months there would only be one sailing per month, each sailing lost reducing the company’s fee by £1,000.[lviii]
As the business developed and grew Cunard based himself in London, Burns in Glasgow, commuting to London and Liverpool as required, and MacIver in Liverpool. The original shareholders in the Burns/MacIver co-partnery were gradually bought out until the business was fully in the hands of the families of Cunard, Burns, and MacIver, each holding one third of the shares. In 1845 David MacIver died, his share going to his brother Charles, whose sons in due course followed him. In 1865 Sir Samuel Cunard died, having been created a baronet in 1859,[lix] and was succeeded by his son Edward, to be followed in 1869 by his brother William.
Burns however, was to live a very long life. He retired in 1858, his son John taking on his role in the business, and sharing his father’s holding in Cunard with his brother James.[lx] This was after a period of intense competition, from about 1850, on the Atlantic route from the Collins Line, an American company. Despite some early setbacks the British company eventually prevailed, Collins finally going out of business in 1858.[lxi]
On his retirement Burns bought the estate of Wemyss Bay on the south side of the Firth of Clyde. He built Wemyss House as the family home, the architect being James Salmon of Glasgow.[lxii]
Throughout his life he was a pious man, perhaps unsurprising as he was a son of the manse. What is unexpected is that in 1838 he became an Episcopalian, essentially a member of the Church of England, particularly drawn to the evangelicals of that church. He was to remain so for the rest of his life as was his wife Jane.[lxiii] From their earliest days as Episcopalians they were active and supportive of their local congregation and minister and that was to continue when they moved to the Wemyss estate.
Jane died on the 1st July 1877 at Wemyss House. She was 83.[lxiv] Almost from the day she died George determined to build an Episcopal church in memory of his wife. He engaged the architect John Burnet to design it and two years later it was complete. It was built in the Gothic style using local red sandstone, its first service, conducted by the Rev. John W. Bardsley of Liverpool, being held on the 15th June 1879[lxv]
George was made a baronet in June 1889[lxvi] and died the following year on the 2nd June, his son John succeeding to the baronetcy and the Wemyss estate. Throughout his life he was a vigorous man, a thinker, interested in doing things differently, and deeply religious. It’s therefore sad to note the cause of his death was given as ‘senile debility’ and that his death was registered by his head gardener.[lxvii]
John Burns/Sir John Burns/1st Baron Inverclyde.
John Burns matriculated at Glasgow University in 1845, age 16.[lxviii] There is no record of him graduating, one source however has it that he took the general arts degree.[lxix] He subsequently joined the family business around 1850[lxx] and by 1858 he had taken on his father’s role in the business when he retired in that year.
By 1865 the policy making and planning essentially was in the hands of John and Charles MacIver. The Civil War in America had ended in that year and the Atlantic passenger trade particularly with immigrants, which had suffered greatly during the war, began to recover. As it did, so did the competition.[lxxi]
Burns and MacIver over the next few years took various steps to counter this, essentially by restructuring their business to make better use of their shipping assets and capital, particularly when it came to purchasing bigger and more modern ships made of iron then steel and screw driven.[lxxii]
In 1855 the British and Foreign Steam Navigation Company was formed servicing Mediterranean and Levant ports. Previously ships on these routes did so under the informal banner of Burns and MacIver however it was recognised that to ensure the best use of capital, maintain and improve profitability, and to ensure funds were properly allocated for the purchase of new ships, a more formal structure was required.
In 1866 further changes to company structure took place with the joining together of the British and Foreign Steam Navigation Company and the original 1840 company of Burns, Cunard and MacIver, the British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. The new structure operated as the British and North American Steam Packet Company, the shareholders being John Burns, James Burns his brother, Charles MacIver, Sir Edward Cunard and his brother William, each family having one third of the shares.[lxxiii] In addition the Burns family continued to run their own shipping company G. and J. Burns.
In the midst of all this activity John married Emily Arbuthnot in 1860.[lxxiv] She was the daughter of George Clerk Arbuthnot and his first wife Agnes Rait. John and Emily had five children, two boys who in due course were heavily involved in the family shipping businesses, and three girls. The eldest boy was George Arbuthnot Burns born in 1861[lxxv], who was the eventual donor of the Inverclyde bequest, his brother was James Cleland Burns born in 1864.[lxxvi]
The business restructuring continued into the 1870’s culminating in 1878 with the creation of the Cunard Steam Ship Company Ltd., the company share value being £2 million, in today’s terms somewhere between £200 million and £3.6 billion[lxxvii], of which the Burns, Cunard and MacIver families took up £1,200,000. In 1880 the remaining shares were successfully offered for public subscription, following which John Burns became the first chairman of Cunard.[lxxviii]
John’s two sons started off in the family company and by the late 1880’s he was less involved in the daily operation of both the Cunard Line and the Burns company, with the deputy chairman of Cunard David Jardine taking on more of his chairman duties and son George running the Scottish and Irish mail services.[lxxix]
He led a full public life in addition to his business responsibilities. He was a Justice of the Peace in the county of Renfrew and honorary lieutenant in the RNVR.[lxxx] In 1890 he became a deputy lieutenant of the county of Renfrew[lxxxi] and in 1894 he became a deputy lieutenant of the county of the city of Glasgow.[lxxxii]
He was a keen yachtsman owning at least three: the ‘Matador’(1879), the ‘Jacamor’(1882) and the ‘Capercailzie’(1883), all iron hulls and screw driven.[lxxxiii] As might be expected he was a member of a number of yachting club’s including the Royal Yacht Squadron.
In 1878 he sailed to Reykjavik, Iceland on the yacht ‘Mastiff’ with his wife, his sons George Arbuthnot and James Cleland. On board were a number of guests including the author Anthony Trollope. On the passage out they went via the Faroes, returning via the Hebrides. A record of the trip was written by Trollope and Illustrated by Mrs Hugh Blackburn.[lxxxiv]
In keeping with his sailing enthusiasm and his role with the RNVR he played a significant part in the setting up a training ship scheme which was established on HMS Cumberland.
He was also something of a philanthropist in that he financially supported a number of charitable organisations including the Eastpark Children’s Home in Glasgow and the Training Home for Nurses, both being remembered in his will. He was an Episcopalian like his father and was fully supportive of his local church St Silas.[lxxxv]
In 1897, in Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee Honours list he was conferred with a peerage and became Baron Inverclyde of Castle Wemyss.[lxxxvi]
He died at Castle Weymss on the 12th February 1901, cause of death recorded as exhaustion resulting from spinal sclerosis[lxxxvii]. Sadly, the next entry the registrar made was to record the death of John Burn’s wife Emily who died at home two days later on the 14th February, cause of death being cardiac failure.[lxxxviii]
He was succeeded by his eldest son George Arbuthnot Burns who became the second Baron Inverclyde and inherited the Wemyss estate.
George Arbuthnot Burns, 2nd Baron Inverclyde.
I have not been able to establish where George attended school nor is there any obvious evidence that he went to university. However, the Times of London states that he had a liberal education and that he had subsequently toured India, China and Australia[lxxxix] before staring work in the family business of G. & J. Burns along with his brother James. That may have been as early as 1880 however by 1882 they are both recorded in the Post Office directory for that year as being with the family firm[xc]. The two brothers had been left equal shares in G & J Burns in their father’s will however as time went on George’s focus seems to have been directed more towards Cunard whilst James essentially ran the family shipping business.
In 1886 George married Mary Fergusson, the daughter of Hickson Fergusson who was a yarn merchant.[xci] They married in St Mary’s Episcopal Church; she was 20 years old and he was described as a steamship shareholder.[xcii] Unfortunately, the marriage was childless.
His father had all but relinquished his role as Cunard chairman to David Jardine and when he died in 1901 Jardine was elected chairman along with George as his deputy.[xciii] He however did not stay as such for very long, deciding to retire in 1902, at which time George took on the role.[xciv]
His first AGM as Chairman was held on the 10th April 1902. It was not wholly an easy time for him as it took place during a period when Cunard’s business performance was questionable, resulting from low freight and passenger rates due to the competitive nature of the business. Whilst it was agreed to pay a dividend of 4% on the paid up capital a number of critical comments were made.
A Mr. Japp stated that the company was so badly run that the only remedy would be to dispose of it to a purchaser who would give shareholders the par value of the shares. A second shareholder, from Glasgow, said basically the same thing and encouraged the directors to put any purchase offers to the shareholders for their consideration. Another suggested that Lord Inverclyde should move to Liverpool from Glasgow as he could not see how “any business could be carried on with the pivot residing in Glasgow”[xcv]
Things however were to improve and by the time of the next AGM on the 8th April 1903 the chairman’s report, and leadership, was greeted on several occasions with cheers, apart from the same shareholder from Glasgow having a gripe about the cost of new ships.[xcvi] The Atlantic rates war, however, was to continue for some time.
Like his father, and indeed his brother James, he held a number of public and business appointments. He joined the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce in 1887[xcvii] and was also a member of the Merchants House of Glasgow for a number of years becoming Lord Dean of Guild in 1903 and 1904.[xcviii] In 1902 he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of the county of the city of Glasgow[xcix] and was a Justice of the Peace for the county. He also served as a director of the Clydesdale Bank and the Glasgow and South Western Railway Company.[c]
His charitable and religious activities were no less extensive. Like his father he was a firm Episcopalian, supporting his church both personally and financially. Included in his charitable activities were the Charity Organisation Society[ci] and the Y.M.C.A., of which he became honorary president.[cii]
He was also an enthusiastic yachtsman, sailing whenever possible his father’s yacht ‘Capercailzie’ which he had inherited. He was Commodore of the Royal Northern Yacht Squadron and a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron.[ciii]
Unlike his direct ancestors George was not destined for a long life. In 1905 he had planned to sail his yacht to Stornoway with Lord Roseberry on board, who was to open the new municipal buildings there.[civ] However, in late August he contracted pleurisy and was unable to make the journey. (Lord Rosebery sailed on the Capercailzie and opened the buildings on the 7th September). It developed into pneumonia with other complications, which despite two operations, proved fatal.[cv]
He died at Castle Wemyss on the 8th October 1905, cause of death given as cardiac failure, pleurisy and phlebitis.[cvi]
He was laid to rest in the family vault in the church his grandfather George built at Wemyss Bay. In addition to close family members the large attendance at the service included, amongst others, peers of the realm, sailors and officers from the Cunard Line and G. & J. Burns, Members of Parliament, representatives from various charities, the Lord Provost of Glasgow, the staff from Castle Wemyss, and representatives from Cunard’s competition in the Atlantic trade, the White Star Line.[cvii]
As George had no children his brother James Cleland Burns became the 3rd Lord Inverclyde. His story however does not end there.
In his will dated 20th March 1901 he left his estate to his wife Mary. She subsequently discovered in his office in Jamaica Street a handbag belonging to her husband containing what looked like a second will dated the 9th November 1902 which left everything in trust to her, she being able to select the trustees. After her death the Glasgow Merchants House would become the beneficiaries of the estate, charged with creating a fund, to be known as the Inverclyde Bequest, and dispersing its annual income, as described in the opening paragraph of these notes, to seamen charities or institutions whose concerns were to support aged or infirm seamen or their families.
He defined seamen as all those who formed the crews of merchant ships, specifically stating that support should be given in particular to deserving seamen who had been in the service of Cunard and G. & J. Burns.
This document consisted of three separate sheets only one of which had been signed by her husband and initially there was doubts raised as to its legality. In the event Lady Inverclyde came to an agreement with the Merchants House whereby she would receive a single payment of £20,000 and the income from the trust for the rest of her life.[cviii]
This provided the means by which the second will could be made valid, with appropriate amendments to allow the above agreement to be implemented. To that end an application was made to the Secretary of State for Scotland for a Provisional Order to remove doubts about the validity of this second will and to give legal force to the changes agreed between the Merchants House and Lady Inverclyde.[cix] On the 4th August 1906 the required Act of Parliament, the Inverclyde Bequest Order Confirmation Act, 1906, was given Royal Assent.[cx]
Lady Inverclyde married again in 1910 to General Sir Archibald Hunter, K.C.B., D.S.O., Governor of Gibralter [cxi] She died in 1924,[cxii] following which, in 1926, the bequest started to operate. Committees in England, Ireland and the United States were established to administer their share of the fund, which at that time was valued at £183,147, whilst the Scottish allocation was managed by the directors of the Merchants House.[cxiii]
The fund dispersals in the early part of this century include the Scottish Nautical Welfare Society, Sir Gabriel Wood’s Mariners Home in Greenock, The Mission to Sea Farers in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Liverpool, Seafarer’s Friend Boston, The Northern Ireland Veteran Seamen’s Friend Belfast, and Seamen’s House Y.M.C.A. New York.[cxiv] In 2016 monies distributed were £50,848, the value of the fund standing at £1,634,372.[cxv]
The direct link between the Reverend John Burns of Barony church and the Lords Inverclyde ended in 1957 when the 4th Lord, John Alan Burns the son of the 3rd Lord, died without issue, the title becoming extinct.
[i] Marriages (OPR) Scotland. St. Ninians, Stirling. 4 March 1741. BURN, John and YOUNG, Jennet. 488/ 50 234. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[ii] Births (OPR) Scotland. Stirling. 19 February 1744. BURN, John. 490/ 20 608. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[iii] Addison, W. Innes. (1913). The Matriculation Albums of Glasgow University, from 1728 to 1858. Glasgow: James Maclehose and Sons. p. 81. https://archive.org/details/matriculationalb00univuoft/page/80
[iv] Hodder, Edwin (1890). Sir George Burns, Bart., his times and friends. 2nd ed. London: Hodder and Stoughton. p.24. https://archive.org/details/sirgeorgeburnsba9582hodd/page/n24
[v] Scott, Hew. (1920). Fast Ecclesiae Scoticanae. The Succession of Ministers in the Church of Scotland since the Reformation. Vol. III. New Edition. Synod of Glasgow and Ayr. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd. p. 394. https://archive.org/details/fastiecclesiaesc03scot/page/394
[vi] Deaths. (OPR) Scotland. Glasgow. 26 February 1839. BURNS, John. 644/1 550 160. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[vii] Births. (OPR) Scotland. Barony 1775 – 1795. BURNS. Search results for children born to John Burns and Elizabeth Stevenson. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[viii] Scott, Hew, op.cit. p. 394.
[ix] Births. (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 15 November 1775. BURNS, John. 622/ 20 485. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[x] The University of Glasgow Story. John Burns. https://universitystory.gla.ac.uk/biography/?id=WH2098&type=P&o=&start=1860&max=20&l=b
[xi] Duncan, Alexander (1896). Memorials of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. 1599-1850. Glasgow: James Maclehose and Sons. p.265. https://archive.org/details/memorialsoffacul00duncuoft/page/265
[xii] Duncan, op.cit. p. 178. https://archive.org/details/memorialsoffacul00duncuoft/page/178
[xiii] Lloyd, Campbell F. (2004) ‘Allan Burns (1781-1813).’ In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4085
[xiv] The University of Glasgow Story. John Burns. https://universitystory.gla.ac.uk/biography/?id=WH2098&type=P&o=&start=1860&max=20&l=b
[xv] Lloyd, Campbell F. (2004) ‘John Burns (1775-1850).’ In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4092
[xvi] The Royal Society. John Burns. https://royalsociety.org/fellows/fellows-directory/
[xvii] Lloyd, Campbell F. (2004) ‘John Burns (1775-1850).’ In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4092
[xviii] Glasgow Herald. (1850) Wreck of the Orion Steamer. Glasgow Herald 18 June. p. 1 f, g, h. https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC
[xix] Caledonian Maritime Research Trust. PS Orion. http://www.clydeships.co.uk/view.php?ref=3687#v
[xx] Births. (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 23 September 1781 BURNS, Allan. 622/ 30 54. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxi] Lloyd, Campbell F. (2004) ‘Allan Burns (1781-1813).’ In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4085
[xxii] JPGM. Journal of Post Graduate Medicine. The Allan Burns Mummies. http://www.jpgmonline.com/article.asp?issn=0022-3859;year=2017;volume=63;issue=4;spage=237;epage=241;aulast=Lee
[xxiii] Deaths. (OPR) Scotland. Glasgow. 29 June 1813. BURNS, Allan. 644/1 520 233. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxiv] Births. (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 29 June 1789 BURNS, James. 622/ 30 23. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxv] Henderson, T.F. (2004) ‘James Burns (1789-1871)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4090
[xxvi] Directories. Scotland. (1823-24). Glasgow Directory. Glasgow: G & J Burns. pp. 40, 109, and Appendix pp. 7, 24. https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/83293887
[xxvii] Henderson, T.F. (2004) ‘James Burns (1789-1871)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/4090
[xxviii] Marriages (OPR) Scotland. Glasgow. 6 June 1825. BURNS, James and SMITH, Margaret. 644/1 400 342. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxix] Deaths (OPR) Scotland. Glasgow. 19 August 1830. BURNS, Margaret. 644/1 620 212. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxx] Marriages (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 2 June 1835. BURNS, James and SHORTRIDGE, Margaret. 622/ 170 254. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxxi] Births (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 27 April 1837. BURNS, John William. 622/ 100 259. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxxii] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Blythswood, Glasgow. 6 March 1860. SHORTRIDGE, Margaret. 644/6 162. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxxiii] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Cardross, Dumbarton. 6 September 1871. BURNS, James. 494/ 65. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxxiv] Births (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 10 December 1795. BURNS, George. 622/ 30 473. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xxxv] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 35, 44. 49.
[xxxvi] Hodder, op. cit. pp. 65 to 68.
[xxxvii] Hodder, op. cit. p.120.
[xxxviii] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 122, 123.
[xxxix] Hodder, op. cit. pp. 145 to 149.
[xl] The Steam Fleet Since The Firm Of G & J Burns Was Established in 1824. Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Reference: TD145/2
[xli] Hodder, op.cit. p. 157.
[xlii] The Steam Fleet Since The Firm Of G & J Burns Was Established in 1824. Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Reference: TD145/2
[xliii] ibid
[xliv] Hodder, op.cit. p. 282.
[xlv] Marriages (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 5 June 1810. MCBRAYNE, David and BURNS, Elisabeth. 622/ 70 336. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xlvi] Marriages (OPR) Scotland. 10 June 1822. BURNS, George and CLELAND, Jane. 644/1 400 139. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xlvii] Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Reference: AGN 2049A.
[xlviii] Glasgow City Council. Glasgow Green Management Plan 2016-2019. https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=31510&p=0
[xlix] Walking Heads. The Cleland Testimonial Building 249 Buchanan Street. http://www.walkingheads.net/tour_stop/cleland-testimonial-249-buchanan-street/
[l] Births (OPR) Scotland. Barony. 1 July 1829. BURNS, John. 622/ 80 450. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[li] Births (OPR) Scotland. Greenock Old or West. 28 July 1832. BURNS, James. 564/3 50 478. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lii] Births (OPR) Scotland. Glasgow. 10 August 1824. BURNS, Margaret Cleland. 644/1 310 432. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[liii] Hodder, op.cit. p. 288.
[liv] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 191-193.
[lv] Hughes, T. E. (1965). ‘The Cunard Story: Part 1 – The Founders’ In: Sea Breezes, Vol. 39, No 235 (July). Liverpool. pp. 503 – 519. Mitchell Library, Glasgow.
[lvi] The Steam Fleet Since The Firm Of G & J Burns Was Established in 1824. Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Reference: TD145/2
[lvii] Young, Henry S. and Harold E. (1913). Bygone Liverpool. Liverpool: Henry Young and Sons. p.108, plate XXXIX. https://archive.org/details/bygoneliverpool00muiruoft/page/108
[lviii] Hughes, T. E. (1965). ‘The Cunard Story: Part 1 – The Founders’ In: Sea Breezes, Vol. 39, No 235 (July). Liverpool. pp. 503 – 519. Mitchell Library, Glasgow.
[lix] London Gazette (1859) 1 March 1859. Issue 22235, p. 953. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/22235/page/953
[lx] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 301,302.
[lxi] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 293-296.
[lxii] Wemyss House. http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/building_full.php?id=222134
[lxiii] Hodder, op.cit. pp. 177- 180.
[lxiv] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 1 July 1877. BURNS, Jane. 567/1 7. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxv] Glasgow Herald. (1879). English Episcopal Church at Wemyss Bay. Glasgow Herald. 16 June 1879. p.4i. https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC
[lxvi] London Gazette (1899) 22 June 1889. Issue 25948, p.3407. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/25948/page/3407
[lxvii] Deaths. (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 2 June 1890. BURNS, George Sir. 567/1 11. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxviii] Addison, W. Innes (1913) The Matriculation Albums of the University of Glasgow 1728 -1858. Glasgow: James Maclehose and Sons. p.461. https://archive.org/details/matriculationalb00univuoft/page/461
[lxix] Slaven, Anthony (2006) ‘John Burns , 1st Baron Inverclyde. (1828-1901)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48614
[lxx] Ibid.
[lxxi] Hughes, T. E. (1965). ‘The Cunard Story: Part 2 – The First Sixty Years’ In: Sea Breezes, Vol. 39, No 236 (August). Liverpool. pp. 584 – 600. Mitchell Library, Glasgow.
[lxxii] Slaven, Anthony (2006) ‘John Burns’ , 1st Baron Inverclyde. (1828-1901)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48614
[lxxiii] Hyde, Francis E. (1975) Cunard and the North Atlantic 1840-1973. London: MacMillan Press Ltd. pp.17-26. https://books.google.co.uk
[lxxiv] Marriages (SR) Scotland. Lasswade, Edinburgh. 27 November 1860. BURNS, John and ARBUTHNOT, Emily. 691/ 30. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxxv] Births (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 17 September 1861. BURNS, George Arbuthnot. 567/01 0033. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxxvi] Births (SR) Scotland. Anderston, Glasgow. 14 February 1864. BURNS, James Cleland. 644/8 342. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxxvii] Measuring Worth (2019). https://www.measuringworth.com/m/calculators/ukcompare/
[lxxviii] Hyde, op.cit
[lxxix] Slaven, Anthony (2006) ‘John Burns‘, 1st Baron Inverclyde. (1828-1901)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48614
[lxxx] Ibid
[lxxxi] London Gazette (1890) 20 August 1890. Issue 26082, p. 4670. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26082/page/4670
[lxxxii] Edinburgh Gazette (1894) 6 February 1894. Issue 10542, p. 169. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/Edinburgh/issue/10542/page/169
[lxxxiii] Hodder, op. cit. p. 517.
[lxxxiv] Trollope, Anthony (1878) How the “Mastiffs” went to Iceland. London: Virtue and Co. Ltd. https://archive.org/details/howmastiffswentt00trolrich/page/n11
[lxxxv] Slaven, Anthony (2006) ‘John Burns‘, 1st Baron Inverclyde. (1828-1901)’. In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48614
[lxxxvi] London Gazette (1897) 30 July 1897. Issue 26878, p. 4270. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26878/page/4270
[lxxxvii] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 12 February 1901. BURNS, John Lord. 567/ 1 1 http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxxxviii] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 14 February 1901. BURNS, Emily Lady. 567/1 1 http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[lxxxix] Obituaries (1905) The Times 9 October Inverclyde, Lord (George Arbuthnot Burns). p. 6c. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xc] Directories Scotland. (1882-1883). Post Office annual Glasgow Directory: George A. Burns. p. 139. https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/84515277
[xci] Directories Scotland. (1874-1875). Post Office annual Glasgow Directory: Hickson Fergusson. p. 174,175. https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/84418721
[xcii] Marriages (SR) Scotland. Kelvin, Glasgow. 6 April 1886. BURNS, George Arbuthnot and FERGUSSON, Mary. 644/09 0152. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[xciii] The Times (1901) The Money Market. The Times 28 February. p. 3f. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xciv] Obituaries (1905) The Times 9 October Inverclyde, Lord (George Arbuthnot Burns). p. 6c. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xcv] The Times (1902) The Cunard Steamship Company (Limited) The Times 11 April. p. 8c. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xcvi] The Times (1903) The Cunard Company and the Government. The Times 8 April. p. 7e. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xcvii] The Scotsman (1905) The Late Lord Inverclyde. The Scotsman 8 October. p. 4h. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[xcviii] Milligan, Susan (2004). The Merchants House of Glasgow 1606 – 2005. Glasgow: The Merchants House of Glasgow. p. 207.
[xcix] London Gazette (1902) 1 July 1902. Issue 27450, p. 4240. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27450/page/4240
[c] The Scotsman (1905) Death of Lord Inverclyde. The Scotsman 9 October. p. 7a,b. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[ci] The Scotsman (1905) The Late Lord Inverclyde. The Scotsman 8 October. p. 4h. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[cii] The Scotsman (1905) Death of Lord Inverclyde. The Scotsman 9 October. p. 7a,b. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[ciii] Obituaries (1905) The Times 9 October Inverclyde, Lord (George Arbuthnot Burns). p. 6c. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[civ] The Scotsman (1905) Lord Rosebery at Stornoway: Opening of Municipal Buildings. The Scotsman 8 September. p.6d. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[cv] Obituaries (1905) The Times 9 October Inverclyde, Lord (George Arbuthnot Burns). p. 6c. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[cvi] Deaths (SR) Scotland. Inverkip, Renfrew. 8 October 1905. BURNS, George Arbuthnot. 567/01 0013. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[cvii] The Scotsman (1905) Funeral of Lord Inverclyde. The Scotsman 12 October. p. 4h. http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
[cviii] Milligan, op.cit. p. 147-149. AND Inverclyde Bequest- Scottish Office April 1906. Mitchell Library, Glasgow. Reference: T-MH 61/2.
[cix] London Gazette (1906). 27 March 1906. Issue 27898, p. 2176. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27898/page/2176
[cx] London Gazette (1906). 7 August 1906. Issue 27938, p. 5453. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27938/page/5453
[cxi] The Scotsman (1910) Interesting Wedding: General Sir Archibald Hunter and Mary, Lady Inverclyde. The Scotsman 2 November. p.10g. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[cxii] The Scotsman (1924) Classified Ad – No Title (Deaths). The Scotsman 2 December. p.12f. http://gdc.galegroup.com.nls.idm.oclc.org
[cxiii] Milligan, op. cit. pp. 148, 168.
[cxiv] Milligan, op. cit. pp. 190, 191.
[cxv] The Merchants House of Glasgow. Report and Consolidated Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 December 2016. Pp.28,30. https://www.merchantshouse.org.uk/desktop/web/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Merchants%20House%20of%20Glasgow%20-%202016%20Accounts.pdf
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