William Brand
WS 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 ...
(5 January 1807,
Peterhead
Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...
, Aberdeenshire – 15 October 1869) was a Scottish solicitor, banker, botanist and plant collector.
Biography
He was born in
Peterhead
Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...
in Scotland the son of Charles Brand a farmer. He attended parish schools, and completed a medical degree at the
university of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
. It was around this time that he grew an interest for botany.
After his studies, William Brand was apprenticed to Scott, Findlay and Balderston, rising to become a partner in 1834, the year he also became a
Writer to the Signet
The Society of Writers to His Majesty's Signet is a private society of Scottish solicitors, dating back to 1594 and part of the College of Justice. Writers to the Signet originally had special privileges in relation to the drawing up of document ...
.
In 1836 he is shown as working from 18 Dundas Street in
Edinburgh's New Town
The New Town is a central area of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It was built in stages between 1767 and around 1850, and retains much of its original neo-classical and Georgian period architecture. Its best known street is Princes Street ...
.
He served as secretary to the
Union Bank of Scotland
The Bank of Scotland plc (Scottish Gaelic: ''Banca na h-Alba'') is a commercial and clearing bank based in Scotland and is part of the Lloyds Banking Group, following the Bank of Scotland's implosion in 2008. The bank was established by the ...
from 1846 to 1869.
He was a founding member of the
Botanical Society of Edinburgh
The Botanical Society of Scotland (BSS) is the national learned society for botanists of Scotland. The Society's aims are to advance knowledge and appreciation of flowering and cryptogamic plants, algae and fungi. The Society's activities includ ...
on 8 February 1836,
and the discoverer of the ''
Astragalus alpinus
''Astragalus alpinus'' is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name alpine milkvetch. It has a circumpolar distribution, occurring throughout the upper latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.
Distribution
It is ...
''.
A bust of William Brand stands in the library of the
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...
.
Distinctions
* 1863: 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 ...
Personal life
In 1848, William Brand married Eleanor Bruce Mitchell. They had 3 children.
References
1807 births
1869 deaths
19th-century Scottish botanists
Scottish solicitors
Scottish bankers
Scottish plant collectors
Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
People from Peterhead
19th-century Scottish businesspeople
{{UK-botanist-stub