Adam Dawson (27 January 1793 – 1 October 1873) was a Provost of

Linlithgow Linlithgow (; gd, Gleann Iucha, sco, Lithgae) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland. It was historically West Lothian's county town, reflected in the county's historical name of Linlithgowshire. An ancient town, it lies in the Central Belt on a ...

West Lothian West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...

, Scotland and owner of

St Magdalene Distillery St. Magdalene distillery was a producer of single malt Scotch whisky that operated between 1798 and 1983. History St. Magdalene was established at least by 1798 (and possibly as early as 1765). During its early life, it was known as "Linlithgow" ...

in Linlithgow.

Background

Dawson was born at Bonnytoun,

, on 27 January 1793, the son of Frances McKell or Meikel (married 1783) and Adam Dawson (1747–1836), a distiller.

Career

He was educated at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and was in many ways a busy man despite being subject to severe

rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including art ...

through all his life. Occupying the position of a country

gentleman A gentleman (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man) is any man of good and courteous conduct. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire and above a yeoman; by definition, the ra ...

he farmed his own land. A keen politician, he interested himself in all public affairs in his county; he was for nearly 20 years Provost of the

burgh A burgh is an autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland and Northern England, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when King David I created the first royal burghs. Burg ...

of Linlithgow (1830–1848), an office which his father had held before him, in which his brother succeeded him, and which his eldest son also held. He took an active part in the business of the firm of A & J Dawson of St Magdalene Distillery, of which he was a principal partner. In politics he was an earnest and consistent Whig. He was a keen supporter of Distillers in Scotland and had an interview with Sir Charles Wood,

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...

, at

Downing Street Downing Street is a street in Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Situated off Whitehall, it is long, and a few minutes' walk ...

to support Scotch Distillers. He held the Chief Magistracy of Linlithgow, JP and was instrumental in the rebuilding of the Burgh Halls, Linlithgow, following a fire, which is commemorated by an inscription above the Burgh Halls, "Destroyed by fire 1847 restored 1848 Adam Dawson of Bonnytoun Provost". Dawson published a series of letters in the ''

Falkirk Herald ''The Falkirk Herald'' is a weekly newspaper and daily news website published by National World. It provides reportage, opinion and analysis of news, current affairs and sport in the towns of Falkirk, Grangemouth, Larbert, Stenhousemuir and ...

'' which he called "Rambling Recollections of Past Times" and which were afterwards reprinted for private circulation. He initially lived at Bonnytoun Farm House, (now a listed building) and in the 1840s he built Bonnytoun House, a Tudor style house attributed to Thomas Hamilton. The house with its walled garden is protected as a category B listed building. Following Dawson's death in 1873, the estate of Bonnytoun was sold to Robert Meikel, a wood merchant from Glasgow, for £20,000. He is buried on the south-east outer corner of St Michael's Church in

with his wife, Helen Ramage.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dawson, Adam 1793 births 1873 deaths 19th-century Scottish businesspeople Alumni of the University of Edinburgh People from Linlithgow Scottish malt whisky Provosts in Scotland