Sir David Richmond (14 July 1843 – 15 January 1908) was a Scottish businessman who served as

Lord Provost of Glasgow The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Glasgow is the convener of the Glasgow City Council. Elected by the city councillors, the Lord Provost serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city. The office is equiv ...

from 1896 to 1899. He was Director of David Richmond and Co., tube makers (later renamed City Tube Works). Wfm peoples palace front

Life

The grave of Sir David Richmond, Glasgow Necropolis

He was born in

Deanston Deanston ( gd, Baile an Deadhain) is a village in the Stirling council area, Scotland, on the south bank of the River Teith east of Doune, in south-west Perthshire. It is a part of the parish of Kilmadock. Etymology The name comes from Walter ...

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

on 14 July 1843, the ninth of ten children to James King Richmond and his wife, Mary Lauchlan, both originally from

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

. His parents moved to

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 ...

when he was an infant. He was educated at St James Parish School then Glasgow High School. In 1865, he travelled to Australasia but returned in 1868 to set up his tube works, which was located at Aytoun Court in Glasgow. In 1879, he joined the Glasgow town council representing the 14th ward. In 1891 (while a city Bailie) he attended a large banquet combining a wide range of famous parties together including

Sir Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

and his then-secretary

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912) was an Irish author who is celebrated for his 1897 Gothic horror novel '' Dracula''. During his lifetime, he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir Henry Irving and busine ...

Buffalo Bill Cody William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but he lived for several years in ...

, and

Harry Furniss Harry Furniss (26 March 185414 January 1925) was a British illustrator. He established his career on the ''Illustrated London News'' before moving to ''Punch (magazine), Punch''. He also illustrated Lewis Carroll's novel ''Sylvie and Bruno''. Bi ...

. His most important contributions as Lord Provost were the building of the People's Palace and laying the foundation of the

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

. He was also greatly involved in the expansion of electricity through the city and building of several public baths and fire stations. He also organised the building of

Tollcross Park Tollcross may refer to the following places: *Tollcross, Edinburgh, Scotland **Tollcross Primary School **Tollcross United F.C. a former football club *Tollcross, Glasgow, Scotland **Tollcross railway station (closed) **Tollcross International Swim ...

and

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, C ...

(named in his honour). He was knighted in 1899 by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

. By 1900, his company had expanded and had premises at both Broomloan Road in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

35 Rose Street in the

Hutchesontown Hutchesontown is an inner-city area in Glasgow, Scotland. Mostly residential, it is situated directly south of the River Clyde and forms part of the wider historic Gorbals district, which is covered by the Southside Central ward under Glasgow ...

district. Sir David was then living at Broompark in

Pollokshields Pollokshields ( gd, Buthan Phollaig, Scots: ''Powkshiels'') is an area in the Southside of Glasgow, Scotland. Its modern boundaries are largely man-made, being formed by the M77 motorway to the west and northwest with the open land of Pollok C ...

. He died at 53 Albert Drive in Glasgow on 15 January 1908 and is buried in the

Glasgow Necropolis The Glasgow Necropolis is a Victorian cemetery in Glasgow, Scotland. It is on a low but very prominent hill to the east of Glasgow Cathedral (St. Mungo's Cathedral). Fifty thousand individuals have been buried here. Typical for the period, only ...

. The grave lies in the linear sections on the east side of the upper plateau. The Celtic cross marking the grave is by J & G Mossman.

Family

In 1870, he married Bethia Moffat Shanks (d.1917), daughter of Robert Shanks of Glasgow. Their son James Alexander Richmond died in 1918.

Artistic recognition

He was portrayed in office by

John Singer Sargent John Singer Sargent (; January 12, 1856 – April 14, 1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his evocations of Edwardian-era luxury. He created roughly 900 oil paintings and more ...

, the leading artist of his day.

References

1843 births 1908 deaths Businesspeople from Glasgow Lord Provosts of Glasgow Knights Bachelor People educated at the High School of Glasgow 19th-century Scottish businesspeople {{Scotland-business-bio-stub