Robert Tatlock Thomson

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

FRIC (1856–1950) was a 19th/20th century British chemist and public analyst. In 1908 he was involved in the first legal definition of

Scotch whisky Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland. All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial distil ...

Life

He was born in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

in 1856 one of five chemist brothers. He studied Chemistry at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. In 1891, with his uncle the chemist Robert Rattray Tatlock (1837-1934), he joined the chemical analysis firm of Tatlock & Readman By 1896 he was a junior partner and the firm was renamed Tatlock, Readman & Thomson, being based at 156 Bath Street in central

. Thomson at that time lived at 37 Annette Street. The firm were experts on the adulteration of food and drink and compliance with the 1860 Adulteration Act. In 1895 Readman retired and the firm became Tatlock & Thomson. 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 ...

in 1899. His proposers were Robert Rattray Tatlock,

Alexander Crum Brown Alexander Crum Brown FRSE FRS (26 March 1838 – 28 October 1922) was a Scottish organic chemist. Alexander Crum Brown Road in Edinburgh's King's Buildings complex is named after him. Early life and education Crum Brown was born at 4 Bellev ...

, Sir John Murray and Sir Arthur Mitchell. In 1908 he and his uncle gave evidence to a Royal Commission within a dispute in the Scotch whisky industry regarding the legal definition of Scotch. This dispute was largely between the Highland malt distillers and the Lowland grain distillers. This created the first legal definition: it had to contain some degree of distilled malt and had to be distilled in Scotland. In 1915 it was also required that whisky be matured in barrels for a minimum of three years. By 1911 the firm was still at Bath Street but Thomson was living in a far grander house: Esmond Villa at 6 Lethington Avenue in the

Langside Langside is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde, and lies east of Shawlands, south of Queens Park, west of Cathcart and north of Newlands. The district is residential and primarily middle-class, ...

district. He died in Glasgow on 20 February 1950, aged 94. The firm of Tatlock & Thomson Ltd still exists but is now based between

Inverkeithing Inverkeithing ( ; gd, Inbhir Chèitinn) is a port town and parish, in Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth. A town of ancient origin, Inverkeithing was given royal burgh status during the reign of Malcolm IV in the 12th century. It was an impo ...

and

Leven, Fife Leven ( gd, Inbhir Lìobhann) is a seaside town in Fife, set in the east Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the coast of the Firth of Forth at the mouth of the River Leven, north-east of the town of Kirkcaldy and east of Glenrothes. ...

Family

He was cousin to the younger Robert Rattray Tatlock

References

1856 births 1950 deaths Scientists from Glasgow Alumni of the University of Glasgow Scottish chemists Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh {{UK-chemist-stub