Dr James Mackay Shewan LLD CBiol FIFST (1909–1988) was a 20th-century Scottish chemist, bacteriologist and amateur historian. He was Head of the

Torry Research Station The Central Science Laboratory (CSL) was an executive agency of the UK government branch, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). It is now part of the Food and Environment Research Agency, which is in turn part of DEFRA. ...

near Aberdeen.

Life

He was born on 6 December 1909 in Kirkhill,

Invernessshire Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populat ...

the son of the local schoolmaster, also James Mackay Shewan, and his wife, Jane Ridland. On the death of his father the family moved to Aberdeen. There he was educated at the Central Secondary School and won a scholarship to Aberdeen University where he studied Chemistry and Geology, graduating BSc in 1932. He then did postgraduate studies and received a doctorate (PhD). In 1960 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

. His proposers were George Adam Reay,

David Cuthbertson Sir David Paton Cuthbertson, CBE, FRSE (9 May 1900 – 15 April 1989) was a Scottish physician, biochemist, medical researcher and nutritionist who was a leading authority on metabolism. The Rowett Research Institute became one of the world ...

, Vero Wynne-Edwards and Alexander Macdonald. He died on 23 June 1988.

Publications

*''Marine Microbiology - Deep Sea'' (1963) - translation *''The Estimation of Trimethylamine in Fish Muscle'' (1972) *''The Deeside Field Club'' (1981) *''Monumental Inscriptions in Monymusk Churchyard'' (1986)

References

1909 births 1988 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Scottish chemists Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland Scottish bacteriologists 20th-century antiquarians {{UK-chemist-stub