Sir John Latta, 1st Baronet (9 May 1867 – 5 December 1946) was a Scottish shipping magnate. Latta was born in Old Cumnock, Ayrshire, the son of William Latta,Biography, ''

Who Was Who ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It is a book, and also a CD-ROM and a website, giving information on influential people from around the world. Published annually as a book since 1849, it lists people who influence British life, according to i ...

'' and was educated at

Ayr Academy Ayr Academy (Scottish Gaelic: ''Acadamaidh Inbhir Àir'') is a non-denominational secondary school situated within the Craigie Estate area at University Avenue in Ayr, South Ayrshire. It is a comprehensive school for children of ages 11–18 from ...

. He entered the family business, Lawther, Latta & Co Ltd, which owned the Nitrate Producers' Steamship Co Ltd, and later became chairman. Under his chairmanship, the

Nitrate Producers' Steamship Company Sir John Latta, 1st Baronet (9 May 1867 – 5 December 1946) was a Scottish shipping magnate. Latta was born in Old Cumnock, Ayrshire, the son of William Latta,Biography, ''Who Was Who'' and was educated at Ayr Academy. He entered the family busi ...

outgrew its title and expanded into all areas of cargo shipping, operating large freighters, mostly built by Shorts. The fleet performed sterling service in the South African War,

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and

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, and for his services to his country in the First World War, Latta was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

in the 1920

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. His younger brother was Sir Andrew Gibson Latta. In 1896, Latta married Ada May (Mary) Short, a member of the

Short Brothers Short Brothers plc, usually referred to as Shorts or Short, is an aerospace company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Shorts was founded in 1908 in London, and was the first company in the world to make production aeroplanes. It was particu ...

shipbuilding dynasty. His only son predeceased him, so the baronetcy becoming extinct upon his death, although he also had two daughters.

Footnotes

References

*Obituary, ''

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'', 6 December 1946 1867 births 1946 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Scottish businesspeople People from Cumnock People educated at Ayr Academy British businesspeople in shipping {{UK-baronet-stub