Sir Thomas Blaikie of Kingseat (11 February 1802 – 25 September 1861) was a Scottish businessman who twice served as Lord Provost of Aberdeen, from 1839 to 1847 and 1853 to 1856.

Life

Born in Aberdeen, he was the son of John Blaikie (1756–1826), a plumbing merchant and his wife Helen Richardson (1765–1844). His older brother was James Ogilvie Blaikie (1786–1836). He was educated at Aberdeen Grammar School and then went to Marischal College. On the death of his father he took over his company, J. Blaikie & Co. Blaikie was elected

Lord Provost of Aberdeen The Lord Provost of Aberdeen is the convener of the Aberdeen City local authority in Scotland. They are elected by the city council and serve not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city. They are equivalent in m ...

five times and served from 1839 until 1847 and again from 1853 until 1856. In the latter year, he was created a Knight Bachelor. In 1855 he was living at 32 Bonaccord Terrace in Aberdeen.Aberdeen Post Office Directory 1855 Another point of interest in Sir Thomas' life, was the first conflict of interest case,

Aberdeen Railway Co v Blaikie Brothers ''Aberdeen Railway Co v Blaikie Brothers'' (1854is a UK company law case. It concerns the fiduciary duty of loyalty, and in particular, the duty not to engage in self-dealing. It laid down a basic rule that if a director had an interest in a cor ...

. Blaikie Brothers were an engineering company specialising in Iron work. A notable piece of work they carried out was the renovation of Crathie Suspension Bridge near Balmoral Castle in 1885. This work was contracted by Queen Victoria. Thomas died in 1861 and was buried in the churchyard of the Kirk of St Nicholas on Union Street in Aberdeen. The grave lies on the west wall towards the south-west.

Family

On 13 November 1828, he married Agnes Dingwall (1806–1885), the fifth daughter of the Postmaster Alexander Dingwall. The Barque ''Agnes Blaikie'' was presumably named in her honour. They had 10 children; John, Janet, Helen, Agnes Dingwall, Jane, Margaret Jopp, Ann Thomson, Thomas, George Thomson & Emily. Incidentally, Agnes Dingwall Bateson (née Blaikie), was the mother of Sir Alexander Dingwall Bateson, high court judge, and

Harold Dingwall Bateson Harold Dingwall Bateson (2 May 1855 – 29 October 1927) was an English rugby union international player. Personal history Bateson was born in Liverpool, Lancashire. He was the son of William Gandy Bateson and Agnes Dingwall Bateson (née Blaiki ...

, England Rugby player.

Recognition

The figurehead of Thomas Blaikie in Aberdeen Maritime Museum is thought to be from a ship bearing his name and likely the sister-ship of the more famous ship, the

Agnes Blaikie ''Agnes Blaikie'' was a merchant ship chartered by the British government during the Crimean War for delivery of military cargoes and equipment to the army which was based in Balaklava. The vessel was presumably named in honour of the wife of t ...

, named after his wife.

References

External links

*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blaikie, Thomas 1802 births 1861 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Knights Bachelor Lord Provosts of Aberdeen

Life

Family

Recognition

See also

References

External links