John Kenneth Hollis (9 May 1892 - ) RFC Pilot and WW1 PoW

Introduction
Jack Hollis served as a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps in WW1.  He was shot down while flying over German lines near Arras in April 1917, “Bloody April”.  Subsequently, he was interned in a Prisoner of War camp at Soltau in Germany and there he met the Belgian painter, Georges Goffart (1891–1974).  Goffart painted Jack Hollis, a haunting portrait of a man who had been through the horrors of war.  By some presently unknown route this painting came into the possession of my partner, who found it while clearing out the possessions of her father and grandfather.  The following account relates what is known at the moment about Jack Hollis and Georges Goffart, in the hope that readers of this blog can throw more light on the subject.

Early Life of Jack Hollis
Jack Hollis was born in 1892 in Muzaffarpur, State of Bihar, India, the third son of Leonard William Hollis and Susan Hollis, nee Lowndes.  Leonard Hollis was himself born in India, at Calcutta, in 1859.  “Hollis” is a name which is most prevalent in the Midlands of England and it is presumed that Leonard met his future wife while on furlough in the home country.  They were married in Cheadle, Staffordshire in 1885.  Susan Lowndes was the daughter of Jacob Lowndes who, in 1871, was described as a plumber and glazier but in 1881 had taken up the new calling of photographer.  After the marriage, the couple left for India.  The first four children were all born in India, three in Muzaffarpur and one in Darjeeling.  Muzaffapur was in an area between Calcutta and Allahabad which was subject to heavy railway development and presumably was the base from which Leonard worked.  Darjeeling was a hill station in the foothills of the Himalyas, much favoured by the British to escape from the heat of summer.  It was and still is, served by a steam railway.

The family appears to have returned to Britain about 1894 because Jack Hollis was baptised at Little Hadham, Hertfordshire in June 1894, though he had been born in 1892.  A permanent return had occurred by 1899, when daughter Phyllis May was born in Tean, Staffordshire.  In 1900, Leonard Hollis became an employee of the Midland Railway Locomotive Department and at the time of the 1901 Census Susan Hollis, a music teacher, was living in Leek, Staffordshire, though her husband was not at home, nor anywhere in the Census return.  Son, Sydney appeared to be following in his father’s footsteps as he had become an apprentice steam engine maker.  In the 1911 Census Susan Barrett Hollis was recorded as a widow living on private means in Combe Martin, Devon.  Her four daughters were living with her.  No record can be found of her youngest son, John Kenneth.  Also, there is no trace of a death registration in the UK for her husband Leonard Hollis.  Interestingly, there is a plausible candidate for Leonard Hollis being still alive.  Born in Calcutta, he was described as a locomotive fitter pensioner and was boarding at Hanford, Stoke on Trent.  He had a wife of less than one year, Violet, who was only 24!

The Royal Flying Corps and the Hollis Boys

The oldest two sons in the Hollis family, Sydney and Douglas, had left Britain for the Solomon Islands but returned during the early part of WW1 to take commissions in the Royal Flying Corps.  Douglas Lowndes Hollis, born 1888, appears to have been a Private in the Legion of Frontiersmen and then a Lieutenant  in the “RA Force”.  The RFC was inaugurated in April 1912 and was the air arm of the British Army before and during most of WW1, merging with the Royal Naval Air Service to form the Royal Air Force on 1 April 1918.  Jack Hollis also signed up for the RFC, as a Second Mechanic, in November 1914.  He served with No 16 Squadron in France for almost two years and made rapid progress in his new calling, being promoted rapidly to First Mechanic, to Corporal and then to Observer, probably as a result of the frequent losses of aircraft and crew.  Jack’s commanding officer was impressed by his work as an observer in France and late in 1916 he was sent home to train as a pilot.  In those days pilots had to pass a three month course, during which the candidates took a Royal Aeronautical Club test. If you were successful, you obtained your “wings”, denoted by a badge worn on the left breast of the uniform.  Jack Hollis obtained his wings on 28^th November 1916.  About this time he was promoted to Flight Sergeant and qualified as an instructor.

Jack Hollis returns to France - the Battle of Arras

About the end of March 1917 Jack Hollis returned to France and was posted to No 11 Squadron stationed at Le Hameau near Arras on the Western Front.  He only had about 40 hours of flying experience.  He was involved in the Second Battle of Arras, which lasted from 9 April to 16 May.  However, the air campaign in support of the battle to come began on 4 April.  This battle was a British-led offensive to push back the Germans from their entrenched positions near the town of Arras.  There were major gains on the first day of the battle but progress subsequently petered out into a bloody stalemate.  At the end of the battle, there had been about 160,000 British and about 125,000 German casualties.  General Trenchard commanded the 25 squadrons (365 aircraft) of the RFC deployed to support the advance by Allied troops at Arras.  He adopted a very aggressive stance for the RFC, with many patrols mounted for the purposes of artillery spotting, aerial photography of trench systems and dropping bombs.

Inevitably, RFC casualties were high, partly due to this aggressive patrolling, partly due to inferior training and equipment and partly due to the operation of the legendary air ace Manfred von Richthofen, the “Red Baron” (his aircraft was painted red) and his “Flying Circus” in the area around Arras.  The average flying life of RFC pilots at Arras at this time was a mere 18 hours.  One German infantry officer wrote “During these days there were a whole series of dogfights, which almost always ended in defeat for the British since it was Richtofen’s squadron they were up against.  Often five or six planes in succession would be chased away or shot down in flames.”  April 1917 became known as “Bloody April” for good reason.  Between 4 April and 8 April the RFC lost 75 aircraft and 105 crew in air combat.  The high attrition rate had caused new trainees to be rushed to the front and in the same period a further 56 aircaft were lost due to accidents.  However, in spite of these losses, the Germans failed to stop the RFC carrying out its objectives.   

Since his return to France about the end of March 1917, Jack Hollis had been flying daily reconnaisance and photography patrols over enemy lines but on 22 April his luck ran out.  Up to this day the squadron had lost three crews with three other men wounded and one killed.   Accompanied by his observer Lieutenant Bernard Tolhurst, Jack Hollis took off at about 3pm in an FE2b aircraft on a photographic reconnaisance mission, accompanied by six other aircraft.  The FE2b was a biplane with a pusher propellor, which allowed the pilot and observer to sit forward of the engine, with the observer at the very front and the pilot in a raised position behind him.  This arrangement gave excellent forward views but left the aircraft vulnerable to attack from the rear and below.  Both the observer and the pilot had machine guns on mountings.  However, neither crewman had a belt to hold him in the machine nor was he equipped with a parachute, though it had been invented by this time. About 45 minutes into the flight they were attacked by a large number of German aircraft from von Richthofen's squadron.  During the engagement, in which Bernard Tolhurst was very active with his machine gun, Hollis' aircraft was hit and the engine and some control cables severed.  Tolhurst was shot in the stomach and Hollis shot in the shoulder, left foot and head.  Although weak from loss of blood, Tolhurst continued firing from a kneeling position when he was no longer able to stand.  By this time the aircraft was effectively uncontrollable and was gliding in the direction of the British lines.  Hollis tried to throw the machine guns over the side to lighten the aircraft but found he could not stand.  The aircraft struck the ground between two German trenches and both crewmen were thrown out, Hollis being knocked unconscious.  They had been shot down by Kurt Wolff, his 19th success.  He was shortly afterwards decorated for his exploits.
When Hollis regained consciousness he found Tolhurst lying a short distance away.  The Germans carried them to the nearest trench.  Tolhurst also came to and the two Britons spoke to each other. Tolhurst asked Hollis how he felt and the reply was that Hollis felt "shot all over".  "So do I" was the rejoinder.  They were both tended by a German doctor, who told Hollis that his fellow crewman was going to die.  The two were laid side by side with Tolhurst now delerious.  He died shortly, muttering "Got one.  Got one."  Jack Hollis survived and was transferred to Soltau Prison Camp.

Prison Camp in Soltau

By this time his mother had moved to 26 Chambercombe Road, Ilfracombe and she did not hear of her son’s fate until she received a letter from Jack’s commanding officer, Major Maclean, about the middle of May 1917.  His letter was dated 23 April, the day after Jack failed to return from his mission.  Maclean wrote “He was clearly seen to land under control behind the German lines.  I am of the opinion that your son is a prisoner of war, and if wounded probably not seriously, and I hope you will soon hear from him from Germany.”  In the middle of June, Mrs Hollis received two postcards from Jack, dated 5^th and 8^th May respectively, confirming that he was a prisoner of war, that he had been wounded  but that he was recovering.  Representatives of the International Red Cross managed to visit Jack on 19^th July 1917, confirming that he was in Soltau Prison Camp.

Soltau Prison Camp (Lager Soltau) was built in 1914/1915 and was the largest German PoW camp during WW1.  It was actually two camps close together, Soltau and Wolterdingen.  There were more than 70 barracks at Soltau housing mostly French and Belgian prisoners.  The town of Soltau lies on Luneberg Heath about 80Km from Hannover, east of Bremen and south of Hamburg.  Its name is derived from solt (salt) and au (river).  Potassium salts were mined in the area.
Bernard Tolhurst's father received a telegram from the War Office on 25 April telling him that his son was missing but adding "that this does not necessarily mean either killed or wounded", sadly giving hope to anxious parents.
Jack Hollis wrote to Bernard Tolhurst's father from Soltau in July 1918, which revealed that he had taken some months to recover from his injuries and that he had been suffering a partial loss of memory, including being unable to recall Tolhurst's name.  He gave Mr Tolhurst an account of the battle and the heroic part that had been played by Bernard.  In a further letter sent to Mr Tolhurst after his return to Britain, Jack Hollis wrote of Bernard Tolhurst "Game to the last, fighting on his knees when he could no longer stand, and even when he was dying he thought of duty, and must have been consoled in the knowledge that he had done his duty as few could have done.  I hope in the afterworld to meet him so I may tell him how I appreciate wonderful pluck and devotion to duty, and how through his wonderful staying and fighting powers he saved my own life."

Jack Hollis' portrait by Georges Goffart

The above is a photograph of the portrait of Jack Hollis by George Goffart.  It is rendered in oil on canvas.  The painting is framed and has inside dimensions of 618mm x 458mm, though the painted area is greater than this, with some painted parts obscured by the frame.  It depicts a young man in a khaki uniform and bearing “wings”, with badges on both shoulders.  The one on the left shoulder can be seen to be of the Royal Flying Corps.  Jack is sitting in a chair smoking a cigarette and has an open book on his lap.  He is well-groomed, unsmiling, even haunted and the pose suggests that he has just been interrupted in his reading.  The smoke curling up from the cigarette suggests that the cigarette had been held in that position for some time.  In the background a piece of cloth, perhaps a blanket, is draped on a vertical surface.  It is not clear if this backdrop has been created for the purpose of the artist, or if it is part of the furnishings of the location. The painting is signed by the artist in the bottom left hand corner “G Goffart”.  The paint is rather thin, especially on the left hand side.  On the back of the canvas, part obscured by the frame, are the following messages. 

1.  “Esquisse A Jack Holl(i)(e)s en Souvenir de George”  (Sketch for Jack Hollis as a keepsake from George).  It appears that the artist initially spelled the surname “Holles” but then corrected it to “Hollis”, presumably after the painting had been completed. 

2.  “ Boulevard Lamberment, Bruxelles” 

3.  “Camp de Soltau en Hannovre 1918” 

Messages 1. and 3. have been rendered in paint using a brush, but message 2. is in ink, as though added later in response to the question “Where do you live?”  The handwriting is the same in all three messages and is clearly that of Georges Goffart.

Georges Goffart - Background

Georges Gabriel Goffart was a Belgian painter born in 1891 in Charleroi, a few miles outside Brussels.  He attended the University Paul Pasteur in Charleroi then, from 1909 to 1914, he studied at the Academie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels.  Boulevard Lamberment in Brussels may well have been where Goffart was living while attending the ARBA.  It is now a major thoroughfare in the commune of Schaerbeek, about 2 miles NE of the modern centre of Brussels.  Photographs from the early years of the 20^th century show Boulevard Lamberment to be lined by elegant apartment buildings and substantial villas.  Belgium was invaded by Germany early in the war, on 4 August 1914 and the occupation of the country was essentially complete by the end of the month. Georges Goffart was a prisoner of war at Wolterdingen (the sister camp to Soltau) during WW1.  It is not known if he was a member of the Belgian Armed Forces, or if he was a civilian prisoner but probably the latter.  Some Belgian civilians who declined to work “voluntarily” for the invaders were incarcerated as a consequence.

During his time in Soltau, Georges’ artistic talents must have been recognised because he took over the decoration of the interior of St Mary’s Church, Soltau, which was built in 1915.  In 1919 Georges Goffart moved to Paris and there he received a gold medal from the Salon Paris-Clichy in 1921. Before the end of WW2, in 1944, he moved back to Soltau to work as an art teacher in Adult Education and in 1955 he married Ilse Born.  She had been born in 1907 in Konigsberg (now Kaliningrad) but fled at the end of WW2 and settled in Soltau, where she worked as a teacher until 1954.  After this date she became a painter.

George Goffart worked in an impressionist style, producing landscapes, still life and some portraits.  His work has been exhibited in Charleroi, Paris, Luneberg, Rothenburg ob der Tauber (where he and Ilsa had a studio) and Soltau.  His pictures appear occasionally at auction, for example, “Vase of Flowers” painted in 1921 and “Hanna Meyerhoff” painted in 1946.  Today there is a street in Soltau, Georges-Goffart-Weg, named after him. A comparison of the signatures on known Georges Goffart paintings with that on the painting of Jack Hollis leaves no doubt that the painter of Jack Hollis was the same Georges Goffart.

Identifying Jack Hollis

How was “Jack Hollis” identified?  A search of RFC personnel records for aircrew with the surname “Hollis” and “J” or “John” as part of the given name or names and who had been PoWs in the European theatre, uncovered two candidates, John Augustus Hollis, born 1896 at Skirlaugh, near Hull and John Kenneth Hollis, born 1892 at Muzaffarpur, India.  A number of factors allowed a clear identification to be made.  John Augustus was an observer, so presumably he had not gained his wings, whereas John Kenneth was a pilot.  John Augustus was an officer, a Lieutenant, whereas John Kenneth was a Flight Sergeant, “unteroff.” as the German authorities recorded.  The German military was very hierarchical and generally sent officers and men to different prison camps.  The camps for ordinary soldiers (Mannschaftslager) typically held more than 12,000 prisoners, often in poor conditions, whereas the officers were generally kept in smaller camps, typically containing 500 or 600 men.  The two camps at Soltau, where John Kenneth was incarcerated, were typical of the camps for other ranks, whereas John Augustus was held at Osnabruck and Clausthal, both officer camps.  These data are consistent with the Jack Hollis in the painting being John Kenneth Hollis.  This is confirmed in the most direct way by reference to the flying roles of the two men, John Kenneth being a pilot and John Augustus being an observer.  During WW1 pilot testing was delegated to the Royal Aeronautical Club, which issued a licence to those who passed.  The proud young men who passed also had their photos taken and these photos are available on line.  There is no record of John Augustus receiving a licence from the RAeC but John Kenneth certainly did (No 4013) and his photograph is almost certainly of the same person as portrayed by Georges Goffart. 

This photograph was taken on or about 28 November 1916.  John Kenneth Hollis is smiling, as would be expected having just gained his wings.  In contrast the painting by George Goffart executed sometime in 1918 shows a man with a sombre and even ghostly countenance who has been through much.  The daily risk of death and injury in aerial combat against an enemy with superior equipment, the frequent loss of friends and colleagues and the almost inevitable  sortie when he did not return from patrol.  On this day he suffered gun shot wounds but still managed to land his aircraft and was subsequently incarceration in a camp with poor medical and living conditions for a year or more.  The painting is a haunting reminder of the stresses and hardships endured during WW1.

Can you help?

This story has been posted in the hope that others will be able to add to it.  Some of the more obvious questions are:-

How did Georges Goffart end up in Soltau camp?

How did Goffart and Hollis strike up a friendship?

What happened to Jack Hollis after the repatriation?

How did the painting end up in our possession?

Let us hope that the power of the internet will be equal to this task!

Don Fox

20150120, 20150128, 20150309

donaldpfox@gmail.com

Bessecarr – Evolution of the Modern Spelling

Bessecarr was a small settlement in the western part of the Parish of Cantley, though in recent times it has become a dormitory sprawl for Doncaster.  It features from the mid-1500s in the baptismal records for St Wilfrid’s Church, Cantley  (CD “Cantley – St Wilfrid.  Baptisms 1539 – 1932”, CD published by the Doncaster & District Family History Society).  From casual observation, the spelling of the name has shown substantial variation, even into quite recent times.  This paper examines the evolution of the modern spelling of Bessecarr, using the full set of data contained in the St Wilfrid records.

Phonetically, the Bessecarr name has remained fairly constant.  It appears always to have consisted of three  components.  These are, in sequence, phonetic “bess”, phonetic (vowel sound “ah”, “eh”, “ih”, “oh”, “uh”), phonetic “car” or alternatively phonetic “cle”.  Very rarely (a single observation) the central vowel sound is absent from the spelling.

Twenty seven separate spellings were recorded from the baptismal records, only one of which (Bess) appears to be an abbreviation.  These were analysed for the frequencies of the variants (4) of the phonetic “bess” part of the name and, secondly, for the frequencies of the variants of the remainder of the name (vowel + phonetic “car”/”cle” – 16).  Data were grouped by decade, starting with 1550-59 and ending with 1930-39.

The main spelling variation in the phonetic “bess” part of the name has been in the use of one or two letters “s”, eg “bes” vs “bess”.  Only three examples of “Bas” or “Bis” were observed, all before 1640.  From the earliest records (1550-59) until about 1660 the “Bes” alternative was predominantly used.  However, after that date, the “Bess” alternative gained ascendancy and by 1730 it was the predominant spelling, though the “Bes” alternative still occurred sporadically to the end of the 19^th century.  Does this main spelling variation indicate that the sound of the first part of the Bessecarr name was either “bez” or “bess”?  My own recollection of local pronunciation in the 1950s and 1960s was that both variants were used in local speech.

In virtually all spelling variations of “Bessecarr” there is a pronounced vowel in the middle of the name.  This vowel is predominantly “a” or “e”.  The use of “a” as the vowel was the predominant form from1590 until 1820 but after the latter date it was rapidly replaced by “e” and after 1900 that was the exclusive form. My own recollections of local pronunciation are that the vowel sound was short “e” but that is not very different from short “a”.

During the period 1560 to 1700 a great variety of spelling variants for the latter part of the Bessecarr name was observed.  From 1620 until about 1660 the predominant form was “-cle” but after the latter date until 1690 this changed to the “-car” variant.  This, in turn, gave way to the “-cre” variant but by 1770, this too had been displaced.  From about 1810 the “-car” variant made its return, this time in association with the “e” vowel and by 1900 this was the exclusive spelling variant.  Most of these spelling variations are understandable in terms of attempts to render in writing subtle variations in pronunciation of essentially the same phonetic name.  However, the “-cle” variant is less easy to understand, since it was probably preceded and followed by similar phonetic renderings of the Bessecarr name.  How was “Besacle” pronounced?  Is it possible that local inhabitants in the first half of the 17^th century had the same difficulty as modern Japanese do in distinguishing “r” and “l” sounds?  If so, “Besacle” and “Besacre” may have had similar pronunciations.

In summary,   “Bessecarr” seems to have had a similar pronunciation throughout the period 1550 – 1930 but the spelling has shown considerable variation, perhaps reflecting subtle changes in pronunciation.  Most of the variation in spelling has been in the latter half of the name and this may, in turn, indicate that most variation in pronunciation was also in that region.  Up to 1700 there were many variants but these quickly condensed to just a few.  Predominant spelling forms evolved as follows. 

1590-1620                            Besacar/Besacle (or similar)

1620-1660                            Besacle

1660-1730                            Besacre

1730-1770                            Bessacre

1770-1820                            Bessacar

1820-1900                            Bessecarr (predominantly)

1900-                                    Bessecarr (exclusively)

Don Fox

20130415

donaldpfox@gmail.com

A Brief History of Freemasonry in Aboyne

The Grand Lodge of Scotland, the governing body of Scottish Freemasonry, was formed in 1736, though there were masonic organisations in Scotland before that time.  Freemasonry comes in a number of different forms, including Craft Masonry, Royal Arch Masonry and Templar Masonry.  All three varieties existed in Aboyne during the 19^th Century.

George, 5^th Earl of Aboyne ( and from 1836 9^th Marquis of Huntly)  was elected Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1802.  At least from 1808 there was a Masonic Lodge in Aboyne and Lord Aboyne was the Master.  He was still fulfilling that role in 1820.  The Royal Arch Lodge existed from a similar date.  This variety of Masonry is considered to be complementary to Craft Masonry in that it deals with man’s spiritual nature, as distinct from the more practical matters.  In 1818 there was a merger between two Templar Encampments, the St George and the Aboyne to form the St George Aboyne Encampment.  However, this Templar Encampment seems to have been an Aberdeen-based organisation, in spite of its name.  In 1919 over 100 Masons assembled at Aboyne to celebrate a Masonic Centenary but precisely what centenary is unclear.

In 1824 a Masonic Hall was built in Aboyne.  It is likely that it was owned by the Aboyne Gordons as part of their Aboyne estate.    A notice was placed in the Aberdeen Journal on May 1826, offering the “spacious and elegant hall belonging to the Aboyne Lodge of Masons” for let for a year from June.  However, in December of 1826 the Lodge held its AGM in “their Hall”, with a Ball in the evening, so perhaps no let was obtained.  In 1827, another notice offered a “large commodious house in the Village of Charleston belonging to the Charleston of Aboyne Lodge of Freemasons will be let for 1 year from Whitsun first and will be let for 1 year from Whitsun next.”  In 1828 it was again offered for let “Mason Hall with 8 rooms a small garden and pump well.  Well worth the attention of a innkeeper or merchant.”

The Aboyne Lodge of Freemasons appears to have run a friendly society for its members from at least 1828, because they agreed a resolution in that year to dissolve the society and to distribute the assets amongst the members.  The dissolution appears not to have occurred because in 1844 dissolution was again moved but was defeated.  Again the matter was considered in 1845, when it appears that the scale of benefits was reduced.  The option of dissolution was further discussed in 1846, 1847, 1867, 1868 and 1873, when the Society was finally discontinued on and from 1 November.  For some years expenditure had been higher than income, though at the time of dissolution there was a sum of £560 available for distribution to members.

For much of the 19^th century, the Freemason lodge at Aboyne was dominated by the Aboyne Gordons.  George Gordon, 5^th Earl of Aboyne and, from 1836, 9^th Marquis of Huntly, was involved in a senior role, probably from its inception about 1816 until his death in 1853.  His position was initially “Master” but was referred to as “Patron” from 1837, when his son, Charles (then Earl of Aboyne but after 1853 10^th Marquis of Huntly) was elected to the position of RWG Master.   In 1844 two other aristocrats became involved, Hon CC Cavendish and Lord JFG Hallyburton, both took on the title of Honorary Master.  About 1854 Charles Gordon, 10^th Marquis of Huntly, was also elected as Provincial Grand Master Mason for the West of Aberdeenshire.  He held the titles of President and RW Master of the Aboyne Lodge in 1856.  After 1863 when the 10^th Marquis of Huntly died, Lord JF Hallyburton assumed the role of RW Master and President.  Lord Douglas Gordon, MP,  a younger brother of Charles Gordon, 11^th Marquis of Huntly,MP appeared on the scene in 1877 and took up the role of PM and in 1879 he assumed the role of RWM.  In 1883 he became PWM and in 1886 RWPM, but in 1888 he died at the age of 36.  Charles Gordon, the 11^th Marquis of Huntly, assumed the marquisate in 1863 at the age of 16 but he appears never to have had any interest in, or involvement with the Freemasons.  After the passing of Lord Douglas Gordon, the Aboyne Lodge appears to have been led by non-aristocrats, starting with Duncan Calder in 1888, followed by Adam Burgess in 1890.

The Farquharsons of Invercauld were similarly associated with the St Nathalan Lodge in Ballater.  In 1893 “the young laird” of Invercauld was initiated into “the mysteries of the Masonic craft”.  His father had been RWM of the St Nathalan Lodge for many years.

For much of the 19^th Century the Aboyne Lodge of Freemasons, No 281, coexisted with the Royal Arch Chapter, No 57.  There seemed to be large overlap of membership between the two masonic lodges.  In 1853 Lord Hallyburton was the most senior member of the Royal Arch chapter and carried the title “Most E, Principal Z”.  The 10^th Marquis of Huntly was an adherent of both Craft Masonry and Royal Arch Masonry.  For more than 20 years he was Provincial Grand Master of Aberdeenshire (West) and for a similar period he was Provincial Grand Superintendant of Royal Arch Masonry for the whole of Aberdeenshire.  Other office-bearers were also members of both codes.

The Craft Masonry Lodge at Aboyne held its AGM on, or close to, St John’s Day, 27^th December, preceded about a week earlier by an initiation meeting for new members.  In the times of the 9^th and 10^th Marquises of Huntly, the AGM was associated not just with the formal business of the Lodge, such as examining the books and electing officials for the coming year, but also with pomp and ceremony, drinking and eating and, accompanied by partners, dancing the night away.  The report  in the Aberdeen Journal of January 1838 illustrates these features very well but also the sycophancy that tenants felt obliged to exhibit towards the laird.  After the election of officers and the examination of the books, “The Lodge then walked in full procession to the Castle of Aboyne and were received by their Noble Patron, the Marquis, in a manner which will be long remembered; no sooner was he appraised of their arrival, than a copious supply of real “Lochaber” was served round, and quaffed to the health of the noble Cock of the North.  With his usual condescension, the Marquis accompanied the bretheren to their hall, when another bumper was dedicated to his health, with three times three and all the honours of masonry.  His Lordship returned thanks; and in the evening the ball commenced, and was kept up with great glee – the Marquis, as usual, leading the dance.”  On 27^th December, 1855, shortly after the accession of the 10^th Marquis of Huntly, when the formal business was over, “The bretheren then, assuming their jewels and robes walked in procession through the village and by the new approach to Aboyne Castle…..A considerable party partook of an excellent dinner at the Huntly Arms, prepared in Mrs Cook’s usual superior style….The Festival of St John has not been kept with such spirit in this quarter for many a year, and never was more heartily enjoyed.”

In the mid-19^th Century the Freemasons were often involved in ceremonies which did not have an obvious or an exclusive masonic context.  In 1856 a ceremony was held to mark the laying of the foundation stone of one of the principal bridges of the new turnpike from Aboyne to Braemar.  Freemasons from both the Aboyne and Ballater lodges attended, fully attired and partook in the pomp and ceremony.  The stone bore the following inscription “The foundation-stone of this Bridge was laid by James Ross Farquharson, Esq, of Monaltrie, Captain in the Scotch Fusilier Guards, on 28^th of November, in the year of Masonry 5860, and of God 1856 and in the nineteenth year of the reign of Victoria, Queen of Great Britain.  James Barron, Builder.”

Charles Gordon, 10^th Marquis of Huntly, died in 1863 and a few years later plans were laid by his tenants and neighbours to honour his memory by erecting a permanent monument.  The “Bretheren of the Mystic Tie”, who took the initiative in this venture because of Charles Gordon’s masonic role, agreed with the Dowager Marchioness, Maria Antoinetta, to site the memorial on the top of the Hill of Mortlich, about 2 miles north of Aboyne.  The monument took the form of a plain granite obelisk standing on a pedestal.  The overall height of the structure was 60’ and it was designed by Mr GH Smith of London.  On top of the obelisk stood an iron cross, similar in shape to the Dagmar Cross of Denmark.  Robert Dinnie, a local builder undertook construction and the stone required was quarried close to the site.  Eleven masonic lodges were represented at the ceremony and on the day of the ceremony they processed, in full regalia, from the Masonic Hall in Aboyne and up the hill, accompanied by the band of the 15^th Highland Depot Battalion and three pipers.  The climb proved to be rather taxing for some of the older Masons, encumbered as they were with sashes, batons, aprons, pinafores and silver insignia.  At the monument site the party formed a circle and their Chaplain, Rev Andrew Gray, gave a long prayer before the foundation stone was lowered into place and ritually touched by the plumb-line, level and square.  It was then anointed with a mixture of corn wine and oil from the cornucopia by the Provincial Grand Master while pronouncing a benediction.  After hearing a eulogy to the late 10^th Marquis the party returned to Aboyne and in the afternoon met again at the Huntly Arms for dinner and, as was usual on such occasions, many toasts.  Rev Andrew Gray gave a toast to “The Marquis of Huntly” (ie the 11^th Marquis, then a callow 20-year-old), clearly expressing the hope that he would follow in the tradition of his forebears by becoming a masonic leader.  “He is a young man who gives very good promise indeed to walk worthily in the footsteps of his father; and if he does so, you will give testimony by what you have done this day, that he will be following a good example.  An excellent example has been set him by both parents, and as he is already well-known and appreciated in this locality, I hope his character will be only more appreciated when he assumes the full management of his property.”  Sadly for Aboyne Masonry, the 11^th Marquis appears to have shown no interest in the Craft.

After the death of the 10^th Marquis of Huntly, Lord Hallyburton took the reins at Lodge 281.  His style seemed to follow that of the late Marquis with the traditional merry-making as part of the celebrations of St John’s Day.  However, in 1879, another Gordon, Lord Douglas, a younger brother of the 11^th Marquis was elected RWM and an immediate change was apparent.  After the business meeting the bretheren assembled in the Masionic Hall with their wives and sweethearts “and an excellent cup of tea partaken of”!  This was not the usual way that the Aboyne Freemasons enjoyed themselves but they had to endure the sober regime of “the cup that cheers but not inebriates” until 1888 when Lord Douglas Gordon slipped his mortal coil. Reporting on the 1890 AGM of the Aboyne Masonic Lodge, the Aberdeen Journal noted that “The Bretheren supped in the Huntly Arms after the business.”  This return to a more convivial regime also marked the start of a period when the Aboyne Lodge was led and dominated by a comfortable, perhaps self-serving, coterie of the village middle classes.

Don Fox

20150108
donaldpfox@gmail.com

Alexander Troup (1858 – 1917) Ballater Butcher and Royal Tradesman

Introduction
Alexander Troup hailed from farming stock in Aberdeenshire.  He married Susan Gray, the youngest daughter of Alexander Gray, the village baker in Aboyne.  Charles Troup, father of Alexander, established a butcher shop in Ballater in 1869, which was eventually taken over by Alexander.  Through a combination of hard work and dedication to the business, he became very successful.  He was a supplier of meat to the Royal Family at nearby Balmoral Castle and received Royal Warrants from King Edward VII and King George V.  But business success was marred by personal tragedy.  This is Alexander Troup’s story.

Troup Family Origins

The family name “Troup” is highly localised in the North East of Scotland, especially in Aberdeenshire, where it reaches its highest concentration, but it is also frequent in the adjacent counties of Banffshire and Kincardineshire.  It is a locative surname derived from Troup, near Gamrie, in Banffshire.  The meaning of “troup” may be derived from the Old Norse for village, similar to “thorpe” in England.

Charles Troup, father of Alexander

In 1841, 8 year old Charles Troup, was living with his parents Alexander and Christian at the farm of Stoneyford in Coull, which is a small village between Aboyne and Tarland in Aberdeenshire.  This was almost certainly the place of his birth.  Also in the house were sisters Barbara, Christian and Isabella and younger brother William, born 2 years after Charles, together with 3 farm servants.  Ten years later, in 1851, Charles Troup was a farm servant working for William Troup (probably an uncle) at nearby Tarland.  This was cattle country and it is likely that raising cattle was a major activity of the Troup farmers.  Probably while working at Tarland, Charles made the acquaintance of Helen Middleton, daughter of the farmer at Milton of Kingcraigie.  About the beginning of April 1855 Helen became pregnant but the couple, unusually, did not marry.  First son John Troup was born illegitimate on 7^th January 1856.  The couple then managed a repeat performance with Helen conceiving about the beginning of May 1858.  This time the couple did marry before the birth, but only just, the wedding occurring in mid-January 1859, while second son, Alexander, made his appearance in early February!  As will be seen from future instances of the behaviour of Charles Troup, he could be described as impatient, impetuous, determined, incautious, indisciplined and generally a wild character. Is evidence of his future behaviour pattern being seen here, with his impatience to have sex but reluctance to be tied down to marriage? 

At the 1861 Census, Charles Troup was found far from home lodging at Castle Hill, Cross, on the Orkney island of Sanday.  His wife and young family were probably staying at the family home in Tarland at the time, though the census record has not so far been found.  Charles was described in 1861 as a cattle dealer and, of the other 3 lodgers in the house, one, John Duncan, was also a cattle dealer.  It is likely that Charles and John were there jointly, buying up cattle which would be exported to Aberdeen.  Remarkably, Orkney was then and is now, famous for the quality of its cattle.  The business reasons for the trip to Orkney are not known but may have been related to John Duncan’s plans to sell Orkney cattle in Aberdeen.  He subsequently became a well-known Aberdeen cattle auctioneer and had a business relationship with the Troup family for about 60 years. 

Charles Troup had worked as a Farm Servant on his father’s farm at Stonyford, Coull in the mid- to late-1850s but clearly had the desire to branch out on his own.  His first known independent commercial activity was to open a butcher’s shop in Aboyne, opposite the Railway Station, in 1867. It is still there today, bearing the name of John Troup, Charles’ elder son and the date of foundation, though there is no longer any connection with the Troup family.  Charles Troup’s butcher business must have done well because in 1869, only two years after opening his shop in Aboyne, he also opened a butcher’s shop in the small town of Ballater, 10 miles further west along the Dee Valley.  In 1871, Charles and Helen Troup were living at Mill Cottage, Aboyne, about half a mile east of the butcher’s shop and close to his slaughterhouse facility.  Sons John (then 15 and an apprentice butcher) and Alexander (then 12 and a scholar) were also living at home.

These were good times to be starting in trade on mid-Deeside.  Tourism was booming for a variety of reasons.  Visitors from Aberdeen and further afield had more disposable income and day-trippers came in their hundreds, mostly using the Deeside Railway, which terminated at Aboyne between 1859 and 1866, the year it reached its final terminus of Ballater.  Moreover, the wealthier and more prominent citizens of Aberdeen often took holiday accommodation in towns such as Aboyne and Ballater for several months over the summer.  The royal love affair with Balmoral, just a few miles beyond Ballater, also played its part in attracting visitors, who were equally smitten with the Highland scenery and Highland culture (some of it of only recent origin).  The landed proprietors of Deeside regularly entertained and impressed friends and acquaintances with house parties, especially involving field sports (grouse shooting, deer stalking and salmon fishing).  Between 1869 and 1900 there was one other important factor, which boosted the local economy.  In that interval William Cunliffe Brooks (later Sir William), a wealthy Manchester banker, lavished money on his vanity project of turning Glentanar, near Aboyne (Glen Tana as he insisted) into an earthly paradise.  As a result he gave almost constant employment to between 200 and 300 local workers and craftsmen on an apparently never-ending succession of construction schemes. In turn, those in WCB’s employment spent much of their additional wealth with local businesses.

By 1879, Charles Troup had added farming to his portfolio of commercial activities.  In 1881,his home address was Fountain Vale, which is located in Station Square, Aboyne, near to the Aboyne butcher’s shop.  The farm of which he was tenant was Boghead, Aboyne, which is located close to Dinnet on the North Deeside Road between Aboyne and Ballater.  The farm was quite substantial, being of 104 acres and he employed 4 men and a woman there.  Boghead was convenient for travel to either of Charles’ shops.  Both sons, John and Alexander, were still single and living at home and each was described as a butcher and farmer.  In March 1880 Charles Troup advertised the services of his stallion “Revolver”, who would “travel Dee and Donside this season”.  Charles was restless in his quest for new business opportunities. 

In 1884 the butcher business advertised for a second-hand Whitechapel Cart, a faster and more sophisticated version of the Dog Cart which was basically used for personal transport, perhaps to get along the North Deeside Road as quickly as was then possible.  Charles Troup also took every opportunity to stock his businesses when good opportunities arose.  Aboyne’s Laird, the 11^th Marquis of Huntly, had chronic financial problems, leading to a constant stream of asset disposals.  At a displenish sale at the Home Farm in 1881, Charles Troup bought “a fine breeding sow” and a boar for a combined price of £11.  In 1884 at a further displenish sale at Home Farm, Inchmarlo, he bought two bullocks and in 1888, on the dispersal of the Auchlossan herd of polled cattle belonging to Mr Barclay-Harvey, he bought “Lillian of Auchlossan”, presumably to contribute to his own cattle breeding plans.

John and Alexander Troup become butchers   

John Troup was integrated into the butchery business from his apprenticeship onwards.  By 1884 the business was described as “Charles Troup and Son”.  However, the same was not true of his brother Alexander.  Although the younger of the two, Alexander was the first to marry in 1881 at the age of 22.  His bride was Susan Gray, the youngest daughter of Alexander Gray, who established his Bakery in Aboyne in 1828 and was a near neighbour of the Troup family.  By 1881, Alexander Gray had died and his widow, Margaret, was in failing health and expired in early 1882.  Indeed, it appears that Susan was not living at the bakery at the time but at the Schoolhouse, Aboyne, the home of her brother, Andrew, headmaster of the Aboyne Public School and the marriage took place there.  Alexander Troup was described as Farmer and Butcher’s Son at marriage registration.

An ill-understood interlude followed in Alexander’s life.  Susan quickly became pregnant and daughter Helen Magdalene was born in August of 1882.  The birth did not take place in Aboyne but at 13 Gilcomston Steps, Aberdeen, 30 miles from Aboyne.  By this date Susan’s mother was dead and her brother Andrew Gray, who was a bachelor, was not in a position to offer personal help.  It is likely that the Aberdeen address, where the child was born was the home of another Gray relative (there were many of them) but no candidate has so far been identified.  At the time Alexander was described as a Farmer and Grazier, so his domicile in Aberdeen was probably only a temporary one until his wife had delivered their first child.  Alexander and Susan had two further children, Alan Gray, in 1884 and Maude Alexandra in 1886.  These two children were born in Islington and Dartford respectively.  At present it is not known what employment took Alexander to the capital, but it may have been connected with the transport and sale of North East cattle in London, or in the butchery business.  There were major sales of cattle in Aberdeenshire in early to mid-December each year for the London Christmas trade.  For example, on one day in 1888, 13^th December, 176 railway trucks, carrying over 1,000 cattle, arrived in Aberdeen for onward dispatch to the capital.  Smithfield Market, the main destination, was the greatest cattle market in England and had been in continuous operation since Medieval times.  It is located at the southern end of the Borough of Islington, where Alexander’s son was born in 1884. In 1887 Alexander returned to Deeside to work for the family business, which, from this time, became known as “C Troup and Sons”.

The Character of Charles Troup

The complex and combative character of Charles Troup is illuminated by a series of incidents which seemed to accompany him throughout life.  In 1882 Charles Troup found himself in Aberdeen Sheriff Court on two charges.  Firstly, of ill-treating and abusing a horse by kicking it on the belly and, secondly, of furiously and recklessly driving a horse yolked in a dog cart on the road at Aboyne.  Troup pleaded not guilty on the grounds that the horse was spirited and he was simply trying to control it.  In Court the claim was made, not for the first or last time in his life, that he had been drinking. The Court found the evidence of “many cruel and unnecessary blows” insufficient and returned a verdict of “not proven”.  However, the following year, 1884, Charles Troup found himself in the same Court on the same charge of reckless driving again!

Charles Troup was not averse to falling out with business contacts, neighbours and relatives.  Also, he was quick to seek redress if he thought he had been wronged.  In 1879, soon after he assumed the tenancy of Boghead Farm, he bought 113stones and 20lbs of hay from George Leonard but when the hay was delivered to Aboyne, Charles Troup refused to accept it on the grounds that about 1/3 was unfit  for consumption by horses.  Leonard sought redress in the Court in Aberdeen and won his case, Charles Troup being found liable for the cost of transport to and from Aboyne and the costs of the case. In 1887 he fell out with a neighbouring farmer, George M’Donald and pursued him in Aberdeen Small Debt Court for damages incurred when M’Donald’s sheep gained entry to a field of turnips belonging to Troup and filled their bellies.  This time the Court found in favour of Charles Troup and awarded him damages of £3 10s 6d.  In 1890 a gang of hawkers camped without permission at Boghead and allowed their horses to roam about the fields.  Charles immediately sought a solution in the courts and those responsible were found guilty and fined 5s or 24h “correction”.  

The dog cart was the personal transport of choice in the second half of the 19^th century and several incidents involved Charles Troup, often under the influence of alcohol, using this mode of travel.  In 1889 Charles met his friend and neighbour John Davidson on the road in Aboyne, the two of them travelling in opposite directions.  Davidson was driving erratically and on the wrong side of the road and Troup shouted at him, probably in intemperate terms, to get back to the other side.  Charles admitted in Court, after some obfuscation, that he had been drinking.  As the two passed Davidson slashed Troup on the face with his whip, which led to Charles Troup taking legal action against him.  Davidson was fined £1 for assault, though Troup hardly came out of the incident as a pure and innocent victim.

A tragic accident happened on Charles Troup’s farm in February 1888, for which Charles Troup was held responsible.  George Thompson, a lad in Troup’s employment was digging in a sand bank under the supervision of Troup’s grieve, when the bank collapsed, burying Thompson, who expired before he could be extracted.  The boy’s parents sued Charles Troup for damages of £300 over the death.  Although Troup was not directly involved he was found to be liable and a sum of £75 plus interest was awarded against him.  That sum was the equivalent of £8,300 in 2013 money.

Charles Troup disposes of his Butchery Businesses

It is easy to see Charles Troup as a difficult and volatile character but in the late 1880s he was under considerable stress at home.  His wife, Helen had been suffering from uterine cancer for several years and it appears to have metastasised to her liver, eventually causing her death in July 1888 at the early age of 52.  Her health must have been failing for some time and this may have been the cause of her son Alexander returning to Deeside from London in 1887.   In February 1889 Charles Troup’s Aboyne butcher operation was offered for sale in the Aberdeen Journal -  “First Class Butcher’s business for disposal in Aboyne, including Cottage, Retailing Shop adjoining, with Slaughter-house, Stable and Byre, Gig Shed, Pigs’ Houses, Washhouse, and Boiler: all in the highest order.”  The following week another notice appeared concerning the Ballater operation – “Charles Troup, Butcher, begs to intimate to his numerous customers in Ballater and surrounding district that his shop will be closed after today.  He desires to return his sincere thanks for the kind patronage and support bestowed on him during the past twenty years.”  Charles was only 55 at the time and young to be contemplating retirement.  What precipitated his decision to dispose of the butcher business is presently not understood. 

In fact the businesses at Aboyne and Ballater appear not to have been sold on the open market but acquired by the sons of Charles Troup, John and Alexander, respectively.  At the 1891 Census, John Troup was found at “House and Butcher’s Shop”, Aboyne, though the ownership of the shop and of Wellbank remained with his father.  John was still single at the date of the census but married Jeannie Barnett, the elder daughter of James Sinclair of Dufftown, in June of that year.  It was another shotgun wedding (shades of his father) and Jeannie gave birth to a daughter about October 1891.  Sadly the infant died at Boghead Farm the following March.  Jeannie was quickly pregnant again and another daughter was born in December 1892.  John Troup by this time had moved to Fountainvale, opposite the Railway Station.  Also at the time of the 1891 Census, Alexander Troup had moved to Ballater with his wife and family and was then in charge of the Troup Butcher’s shop there.  He was living at 3 Deebank Buildings, Ballater and employed two servants.

Charles Troup starts a new liaison - with his housekeeper!

After his decision to give up the butcher business, Charles Troup continued to live and farm at Boghead.  He appears to have taken in a housekeeper, Margaret Fordyce, an unmarried 36 year old with an illegitimate child, born the previous year. He must have quickly succumbed to her charms because about the end of May 1889 she became pregnant by Charles, only 10 months after the death of his first wife Helen.  The pair married at the beginning of October 1889 at Boghead.  Interestingly, the ceremony was not conducted by James Mackenzie, the Church of Scotland Minister in Aboyne, but by his counterpart from Dinnet, Rev John G Michie.  Baby Charles Fordyce Troup was born at Boghead in early February 1890 but it was not until 25th February, almost 3 weeks afterwards, that the birth was registered.  The Aboyne Registrar was Rev Andrew Gray (another child of Alexander Gray the baker) the Parochial Schoolmaster and an Elder in the Church of Scotland.  He would have been immediately aware of the significance of the dates of marriage and birth.  It would not be surprising if the marriage was subject to strong disapproval in the local community.

William Troup, a relative of Charles, had farmed West Pett, Tarland for many years but died there in January 1890, leaving two aged sisters, Margaret and Mary Troup to manage the farm.  This may have been an ideal opportunity for Charles Troup to escape from the wagging tongues of Aboyne by moving to Tarland to help on the farm at West Pett.  The circumstances of his new marriage would be less likely to be known in that district.  At the time of the 1891 Census Charles Troup was living at West Pett but his new wife and family were not with him.  Helen Fordyce, the 3 year old illegitimate daughter of Margaret Troup was not with her mother but was lodging with David and Ann Fraser at Woodside, Aberdeen.  Also boarding there were a grandson of the Frasers, another 3 year old child, apparently without parents and a young woman working in the local paper mill.  Helen Fordyce had been born in Woodside in 1888 and it seems likely that the Frasers were well known to her mother.  However, the location of Margaret Troup and her new baby, Charles, has not been found.  Had the whole of Charles Troup’s new family absented itself from Aboyne while local interest in their circumstances declined? Charles’ further actions seem to support this idea.  One of Charles’ properties was Wellbank Cottage, Aboyne, a few hundred yards from the shop.  In 1892 Charles Troup advertised all the contents (“a large and varied assortment of very superior furniture
”) of the cottage for sale by public roup.  Wellbank itself was not sold but offered for let, along with Boghead farmhouse, by John Troup. Eventually, about 1894, Charles Troup returned to Aboyne to farm Boghead again, though he no longer seemed to be involved with the butchers’ shops.  But this situation did not last for long.  In 1896 it was announced that Charles Troup was retiring from farming at the age of 64 and a displenish sale at Boghead advertised.  Also, the proprietor of Boghead Farm, Aboyne Estate (then owned by Sir William Cunliffe Brooks) advertised its availability for let.

Charles’ withdrawal from Aboyne life appeared to be confirmed when he put up for sale two cottages and shops opposite Aboyne Station and occupying the “best business site in Aboyne”.  Also on offer was Wellbank Cottage and the unexpired portion (to Whitsun 1916) of his lease on slaughterhouse facilities at Aboyne Mill.  At the end of August 1897 the roup was held in the Huntly Arms and attracted a big attendance.  However, the proceedings were quickly terminated.  Prior to the roup John Troup’s solicitor had struck a private bargain to buy the shops and cottages opposite the Station and the purchase of the unexpired portion of the lease on the slaughterhouse for £925 (about £100,000 in 2013 money).  At the roup itself, John Troup’s solicitor bought Wellbank on behalf of his client for the upset price of £550 (about £54,000 in 2013 money).  These transactions illustrate the overall success of the various Troup enterprises.  Charles Troup had garnered sufficient capital to buy the Aboyne properties in the first place and his son John had been in a position to buy the same properties from his father in 1897.  

At the 1901 Census Charles Troup, his second wife, Margaret, his step-daughter, Helen Fordyce and his two children by this marriage (Charles and Elsie) were living at St Catherine’s Cottage, Aboyne.  Interestingly, Charles was still described as a farmer.  In 1911 Charles was back farming at West Pett, Tarland and described as single, though he was still married to his second wife, Margaret.  He lived long, finally expiring at the age of 88 in 1922 from anal cancer, long enough to mourn the passing of his younger son, Alexander, in 1917.  Without doubt he was a complex and difficult man but one to whom making money came easily.

Alexander Troup takes over the Ballater shop

Exactly how and when the Troup butcher shop in Ballater fell under the control of Alexander Troup is not clear.  Alexander returned from London to Deeside in 1887 and in 1889 his father put a notice in the local paper saying that the Ballater shop would be closing from 16^th February.  Clearly it did not close (or not for long) because in 1891 Alexander, his wife and family were living in Ballater and he was described as a butcher.  In 1892 and 1893 he advertised for staff for the Ballater butcher shop.  Presumably, like his brother he had to buy the business from his father.  What is clear is that he pursued the success of the business with enthusiasm and utter single-mindedness from the start.

A spat with the Local Authority 

It is not clear which body constituted the Local Authority in Glenmuick, Tullich and Glengairn, the parish in which Ballater was located, prior to 1890. The Parish had a Parochial Board and Ballater had a Town Council. Alexander Troup had applied to a committee of the Local Authority, probably in December 1888, for approval to build a slaughterhouse within 50 yards of the western boundary of the town, clearly trying to minimise the olfactory nuisance that such establishments can engender.  At that time there was no such local facility. Animals had to be killed at the premises near Aboyne Mill and the carcasses transported the 10 miles to Ballater.  Approval was granted by the committee on 4 December.  However, the Local Authority, as a body, declined to endorse the decision of its committee and wrote to Alex Troup on 12 February 1889 telling him not to construct the building until the site was formally approved.  This must have infuriated Alexander Troup who was keen to establish his slaughtering facility and believed that he already had valid authority to proceed.  How could they now legitimately go back on their decision? Alexander then made an appeal to the Board of Supervision but this was disallowed.    He ignored the Local Authority, completed development and started slaughtering.  In August of 1889 the Local Authority of Glenmuick, Tullich and Glengairn met at the close of a Parochial Board to consider a letter from Alexander Troup.  The contents of the letter were not disclosed but it seems likely that Troup justified his position.  The Local Authority decided to take legal advice.  It seems likely that the advice received was that Alexander Troup did not have authority to use his premises as a slaughter-house, because in March 1890 the Local Authority presented a petition to the Sheriff Court in Aberdeen seeking an interim interdict to prevent Troup slaughtering cattle at his premises on the western edge of Ballater.  In Court the agent for Alexander Troup claimed that the actions of the Committee had been binding on the Local Authority itself.  In view of the permission, whether valid or not, interim interdict would be inappropriate until the full circumstances had been investigated.  Further, it would be very inconvenient for Troup if slaughtering had to stop, as he had substantial business in the district including supplying “royalty and nobility.”  While this last point raised laughter in the Court, the ears that mattered were deaf.  The Sheriff granted the petition for interim interdict and use of the slaughterhouse temporally ceased.

A Ratepayers' Revolt  

This was a time of major change in the organisation of local government in Scotland.  The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 established elected county councils, divided into electoral districts, each having a district committee consisting of county councillors for that area and one representative from each contained parochial board and burgh.  The Act came into force on 15 May 1890.   Ballater also become a Police Burgh in 1890 and then elected annually a board of Police Commissioners.  The Police Commissioners were empowered to collect money locally for a variety of purposes, including the prevention of infectious disease.  This new structure of Local Government inherited a mess, created at least partly by its predecessor, concerning the siting of the Ballater slaughterhouse.

Shortly before the new administrative structures came into being, public anger at the closing of the slaughterhouse welled up in Ballater.  A meeting about the matter was held in the Albert Memorial Hall at the beginning of April 1890.  Three hundred people attended and Provost Brebner was called to the chair.   Four motions were passed, apparently by acclamation, such was the mood of those present.  Their wording makes clear that the Local Authority was out of kilter with the views of the generality of Ballater residents.

First motion. “That this meeting of ratepayers protest against the action of the Local Authority in taking legal steps to prevent Mr Troup from using his slaughterhouse as being a needless expenditure of ratepayers money, seeing that they (the ratepayers) consider it as only supplying a much felt want in the place.”

Second motion. “That this meeting protest against the slaughterhouse being represented as in any way injurious to the village or inhabitants seeing they have it in their power to cause the place to be so kept that it shall in no way interfere with the health of the same.”

Third motion. “That the site where the slaughterhouse stands be approved of by the meeting as the most appropriate place that it could be in within the village boundaries.”

Fourth motion. “That this meeting, in view of the foregoing resolutions cannot refrain from thinking that the Local Authority in taking the steps they have are acting from personal motives and not for the good of those whom they represent and that they be asked to rescind their motion prohibiting Mr Troup from using his slaughterhouse and acquiesce in that of the committee which is more to the mind of the ratepayers as giving their expression to their wishes in the matter.”

The four motions were sent to Alexander Troup’s agent and to the County Council which, through its Deeside District Committee, was about to inherit responsibility for resolving the matter, along with the Ballater Police Commissioners.  The DDC considered the slaughterhouse issue at its meeting in mid-August 1890 but wisely decided to take no action until the sheriff had reached his conclusion.  It is not clear what the precise outcome of the legal action was, but Alexander Troup did get to use his slaughterhouse, even though a few locals continued to claim that it was detrimental to the health of residents.  “Craig-Gowan” a commentator on Deeside matters, who contributed a column called “Deeside Notes” to the Aberdeen Journal, clearly took the side of Alexander Troup and warned the Ballater Police Commissioners that if their opposition continued they might have to atone for their actions and those of their predecessors by paying compensation.  This brought forth a furious rebuttal and defence of the Local Authority by an anonymous correspondent, but to no avail.  Alexander Troup’s slaughterhouse continued to operate, as can be seen from advertisements for slaughterhouse staff in 1892 and 1893.

Ballater Police Commissioners pick a fight with Farquharson of Invercauld

In this period of transition to a new structure for local government in Scotland, it appears that some members of elected bodies in Ballater struggled to exercise their new powers with a degree of pragmatism.  One would have expected that after the slaughterhouse episode, even if the Local Authority had been technically in the right, those exercising democratic authority would have realised that due account needs to be taken of the public view, especially if this is overwhelmingly on one side of the argument.  However, a few years later, in 1897, the Ballater Police Commissioners set themselves up for another fall.

It was proposed to construct a street of 36ft width between Dundarroch and The Jungle in Ballater.  However, such a street would need the cooperation of Mr Farquharson of Invercauld, a major local landowner and proprietor of the land at issue.  The feuars occupying houses that would be served by the new street were only entitled to an access of 18ft to 20ft wide, according to their charters.  Farquharson declined to make further land available and, to emphasise his position, he had his agent erect a wire fence to restrict any new road to 18ft to 20ft.  The Police Commissioners, believed that they could only sanction a road of 36ft and decided to wave the big stick by issuing an ultimatum, stating that after one month they would proceed to make the roadway and charge the matter to the feuars and the proprietor.  Instead of cloaking themselves with the formalities of their legal powers, they would have been wiser to consider instead the status of Farquharson as one of the major landowners in the area and as a figure who was deferred to by his feuars, tenants, employees and suppliers in the town.  One month after their threat, Farquharson had not caved in, so the Commissioners debated a motion threatening Farquharson with an interdict if he tried to build within 36ft of the front line of existing feus.  Five voted for the motion and three against, including Alexander Troup, who was a Police Commissioner at that time.  The opponents did not see the point of picking a fight with the proprietor at that time and refused to take any further part in proceedings, in effect resigning.  At the end of 1897 a municipal election took place to fill the three vacant positions.  The campaign was fought on the issue of widening Dundarroch Street, with three candidates on each side of the debate for the three vacancies.  The “softly, sofly” candidates won by a large majority, as a result of which the existing Commissioners found themselves in an untenable situation, albeit one of their own making.  They resigned en bloc and a new Provost, James Grant, was chosen, Alexander Troup was appointed Second Magistrate and calm was restored to local government in Ballater.  

Royal patronage and Alexander Troup's business

Because of the importance of cattle and sheep in the agricultural economy of Aberdeenshire, the local newspapers regularly reported on the details of sales.  They often gave the names of buyers and sellers, the identity of the animals and the prices paid, as well as comments on market conditions.  However, it is not clear how complete the coverage was, as data were, in some cases, omitted due to space-saving changes in reporting style.  In spite of obvious limitations, through these statistics it is possible to make generalised deductions about the progress being made by Alexander Troup’s business in Ballater.  From 1889, Alexander Troup and John Troup appeared to buy animals separately, though no data have been found for 1887 and 1888.  During the 1890s there was a gradual build-up of reported frequencies of Alexander Troup attending cattle sales and buying beasts.  But there was a sudden increase in activity immediately after the turn of the century, reaching an approximate plateau between 1905 and 1916 of roughly 10x the activity of the 1890s.  Alexander was largely a beef butcher, typically buying an equal mix of heifers and bullocks.  He was occasionally recorded buying sheep and, more rarely, fat pigs.  By far the most popular mart at which Alexander Troup bought cattle was Aboyne but he also attended Banchory, Lumphanan, Torphins, Stonehaven and John Duncan’s City Auction Mart in Aberdeen.

The big event which appeared to influence Alexander Troup’s business fortunes was the formal acknowledgement of Royal patronage by the award of Royal Warrants for the supply of meat.  Ballater was ideally placed to provision the Royal estates at Balmoral, Birkhall and Abergeldie, as well as such major landed proprietors as Sir Alan Mackenzie at Brackley House, Glenmuick, Mr Keillor at Morven and the Farquharsons at Invercauld.  Alexander was providing meat to “Royalty” from at least 1889 and his obituary in the Aberdeen Journal claimed he had held a Royal Warrant “since Queen Victoria’s reign”, though there is no direct evidence that he was awarded a Royal Warrant by her. Queen Victoria died on Jan 7, 1901 and was succeeded by her son, Edward VII.  In July of that year Alexander Troup received intimation from the Lord Steward that the King had granted him a Royal Warrant as a purveyor of meat to His Majesty.  In 1903 he also received a Royal Warrant as purveyor of meat to the Prince of Wales (later George V).  From January 1904 a regular cycle of annual appointments of Royal Tradesmen was made until the end of Edward VII’s reign in May 1910 and Alexander Troup was reappointed on each occasion.  From January 1912, after the coronation of George V, the annual cycle was restarted and again Alexander received the accolade of Royal Tradesman each year to and including January 1918, which was after his death.  In newspaper reports of his attendance and purchasing at local marts, Alexander was routinely referred to as “Butcher to the King”, so his Royal appointment would have been widely, if not universally, known in the meat trade.

It seems likely that most, if not all, the meat supplied by Alexander Troup to the Royal household was beef, partly from the pattern of animal purchases that he made and partly from the fact that another Ballater butcher, Donald Gordon, also held a Royal Warrant but for the supply of mutton.  George V, like many Highland lairds, showed concern for the welfare of the poorer and working people on his estates and distributed Roe venison when surpluses occurred.  He also instructed Alexander Troup, annually before Christmas, to kill and distribute a bullock.  There was also an association of Royal Tradesmen which met in Aberdeen to preen itself but it is not clear if Alexander Troup even attended these gatherings, which were dominated by Aberdeen merchants.  There were also occasional suppers and balls at Balmoral for estate workers and local warrant holders and Alexander and one of his daughters attended at least one of these events, in 1911, though there were no Royals present, John Michie, the Balmoral Factor substituting for them.  Alexander, Susan and one of their daughters also attended a Tenants’ Ball held at Birkhall in 1898.  The Troups were also invited to events at Brackley House, the mansion of Sir Allan Mackenzie on a regular basis around the turn of the century.  Another local landowner, Mr Keillor, owner of the Morven estate and famous for the manufacture of marmalade in Dundee, also held occasional events which were attended by Alexander Troup.

It is likely that Alexander’s role in supplying meat to royalty, nobility and gentry caused him to move to the top end of the meat market.  From market reports it is clear that he routinely bought young animals and often animals which were prize-winners or which emanated from well-known herds, for example, at the first sale at the new Aboyne Auction Mart in 1896, “The first animal sold in the ring was a fine heifer consigned by Mr AG Stewart of Ballaterach.  It was quickly knocked down to Mr Troup butcher, Aboyne for 19gns.”  In 1889 at John Duncan’s City Auction Mart, Alexander Troup paid the top price for a bullock.  The King’s estate at Abergeldie was a major cattle producer and much was made of the fact when Abergeldie cattle were put up for sale.  In 1903, when cattle consigned by the King were sold at the City Auction Mart, Alexander Troup paid £34 for a bullock, without doubt a top-end price.  At Aboyne the following year, “A Troup, butcher to the King, bought two exceptionally well finished bullocks.”  There were numerous other examples over the years which illustrated this point.

Innovation in the Ballater shop

Alexander Troup’s focus on the development of his butchery business in Banchory was illustrated by his willingness to invest in development of the business.  The earliest example of this single-minded approach was his development of slaughterhouse facilities in Ballater itself but there were other examples.  In 1900 the local newspaper reported that the shop in Bridge Street had been remodelled and enlarged and that it was now “one of the best butcher’s shops out of Aberdeen.”  In 1915 he introduced an electric mincing machine to his shop and was the first person in Ballater to use electrically-driven machinery.  A few years prior to 1915 he had introduced a water-driven fan to his shop, which had apparently worked admirably.  Alexander Troup was also an enthusiast for electric lighting and one of the pioneers of this form of illumination in the district.

A fraud is perpetrated on Alexander Troup

Unlike his father, Alexander’s only experience of law enforcement was when he was the occasional victim of crime. During 1891 a young woman by the name of Isabella Smith toured the North East of Scotland perpetrating a series of frauds.  The local newspaper described her as being “of respectable and somewhat prepossessing appearance”.  One of the victims was Alexander Troup, though it is not clear if he was in the Ballater shop when Miss Smith paid a visit.  Shopkeepers in those days often allowed payment on account, especially to those of means.  Smith, clearly an accomplished confidence trickster, obtained meat and potatoes to the value of 5s without paying.  Eventually, she was sent down for 6 months. In 1896 the butcher shop in Ballater was burgled but nothing was taken.  Perhaps Alexander Troup then regretted selling the “Shaggy St Bernard bitch” he advertised in 1892 as being a good guard dog!

A reluctant local politician

Unlike several of his local relatives, such as his father Charles Troup, his brother John Troup, his brother-in-law John Davidson and his son-in-law Alexander Sandison, Alexander Troup did not allow vanity representation on public bodies get in the way of his consuming passion, his business, only becoming involved when he saw both a need for his intervention and an opportunity to achieve a desired end.  He was a member of the Ballater Town Council and the Ballater Police Commissioners in the period 1895 to 1898, at a time when he was hostile to the mode of operation of both these bodies in the aftermath of their attempt to block him using his Ballater slaughterhouse.  He was a member of a faction which opposed the confrontation with the Farquharsons in 1897 over the demand for land for road widening.  Another walk-out was staged by the same faction over the appointment of a Public Prosecutor for Ballater in 1898.  Finally, Alexander Troup and his like-minded colleagues, clearly more in touch with public sentiment, vanquished their opponents, who were forced to resign.  Alexander Troup then seems to have left representational politics to concentrate on business.  During WW1 he did return briefly to the Ballater Town Council, being elected unanimously to fill the vacancy created by the death of Provost Duguid in 1915.  Alexander was immediately appointed convener of the Water Sub-Committee, a role which he exercised with his customary zeal.  Later that year the Ballater Town Council inspected the Ballater Water Plant and Provost Grant congratulated Alex Troup and Mr Ord, the superintendant, on the “spick and span condition” of the facility.  Also, during WW1 Alexander Troup served on the local Military Tribunal, which passed judgment on applications for exemption from military service.

The Aboyne Auction Mart

In the late 1890s, there was a move in Aboyne to supplant the traditional Aboyne cattle market, which was held on the Green, by an auction mart.  This move was supported by the major producers and buyers and fronted by Charles Gordon, 11^th Marquis of Huntly.  A committee was formed to move the idea forward and Alexander Troup was a member of that committee.  When the Aboyne Auction Company was formed he was nominated as a Board Member but then declined to serve, perhaps feeling that his objective had been achieved and he could better devote his time to the butchery business.

Sponsorship

Through he was not a seeker after pomp or recognition, he understood very well the need to do the right things publicly, right across the social spectrum, in order to promote the interests of his butchery business.  For many years he was a supporter, by donating to the prize fund, of the annual Corgarff Ploughing Match, held a difficult 12 mile journey away, over the hills, on Upper Donside.  When the geography of this situation is examined it can be seen that Ballater is the nearest significant town to Corgarff, which would have been a worthwhile source of patronage for the Ballater butcher shop.  Alexander Troup also clearly understood the need to ingratiate himself with the local royalty, nobility and gentry, and their agents.  He routinely joined in with the public acknowledgement of significant happenings in the lives of the upper classes, from a celebratory dinner on the birth of a child to Mrs Keillor in 1889 to decking out his shop with flags and sheepskins tied with ribbons on the occasion of the presentation of a painting of Lady Mackenzie to Sir Allan in 1898.  Attending to mourn at funerals, such as those of of Mr GM Farquharson in 1899 and Lt AJR Mackenzie, Sir Allan’s son, in 1904 was also de rigeur.  Alexander also seconded the candidature of John Michie, the Balmoral Factor (a very influential figure) in the Aberdeen County Council elections of 1907.

Though he contributed to good causes, he was not forward in promoting charitable works.  He may have been a member of the St Nathalan Lodge of Freemasons but appears never to have held office, he was not a member of Aberdeenshire County Council, or its local Deeside District Committee and he did not exhibit at the local agricultural or flower shows.  Politically, Alexander Troup was a supporter of the Unionist cause, perhaps not surprising for one so closely involved in commerce, but he never seemed to speak at public meetings.  He also supported the Deeside Volunteers.  Alex Troup gained a great knowledge of cattle through his work and this was acknowledged by the Scottish National Fatstock Club in 1903 when it elected him as a judge, but no occasion has been found of him acting in that capacity at any of the numerous agricultural shows held in the north east of Scotland.  He occasionally played golf at Ballater and he tried salmon fishing on the Dee but, as in business, he had only one consuming passion in the sporting arena and that was the “Roaring Game”, curling.

Curling

In both Aboyne and Ballater, curling was pursued with great enthusiasm, mainly by the landed proprietors and the trading classes, in the period December to March, when there was a good chance that ice would be available.  This included occasionally playing on moonlit nights, such was the local commitment to the game.  Both his father, Charles and his brother, John, were keen “Knights of the Broom” and good enough to skip for the Aboyne club, so it is not surprising that Alexander Troup should have been smitten too, first being mentioned in results of games in 1881 and as a skip in 1883.  From the time of his move to Ballater about 1889 he skipped regularly (skips were elected annually by the membership) and often successfully for the Ballater club until 1915, including at the North East Regional Bonspiel, held each year, frequently on Deeside.  Sir Allan Mackenzie, the Laird of Glenmuick, was also a curling enthusiast and he and Alexander Troup pursued a friendly rivalry on the ice for many years.  For example in 1895 a challenge match was played between teams skipped by the two of them, the ironic prize being the right to supply an Irish Stew pan for the new clubhouse.  The result was a draw.  Games were usually succeeded by eating, drinking and general joviality.  In 1896 Troup beat Mackenzie but in 1899 he lost to the local laird.  Alexander Troup was elected Vice-President of the club in 1913 and in the traditional match against the President’s team that year, Troup was victorious.

The family of Alexander and Susan Troup

Alexander and Susan Troup had a family of three, Helen Magdalene, born in 1882, Allan Gray, born in 1884 and Maude Alexandra, born in 1886.  Both the girls made good marriages.  Helen Magdalene married Charles Young, a farmer, at the Invercauld Arms in Ballater in 1907.  Charles Young was aged 40 and Helen Magdalene was 25.  Interestingly, Charles Young’s usual address was Playa Maria Vera Cruz, Mexico.  Also, he was the brother of William Young, MP for Perthshire.  Maude Alexandra married Alex Sandison, the successful and influential lessee of the Huntly Arms Hotel in Aboyne.  Both men were wealthy and this led Alexander Troup initially to exclude his daughters from benefit from his will, since they were already well provided for.  Allan Gray served his apprenticeship as a butcher with his father and it was Alexander’s intention that his son should eventually take over the butcher business in Ballater.  Sadly, this succession plan fell apart in a tragic and dramatic way.

Allan Gray Troup - a Troup family tragedy

Allan Gray Troup was born into privileged circumstances but seems not to have made much impact on his community.  He was a breeder of Sheltie dogs, a sometime curling skip and a participant in local amateur dramatics.  On occasion he acted as driver of his father’s horse-drawn delivery van and, in this role, was the innocent victim of a serious accident.  In September 1900 he had drawn up his van at the side of the road from Braemar to Ballater, when he was run into by a phaeton (four-wheeled vehicle for carrying passengers and luggage) driven by William Gordon, a farmer who was travelling with his shepherd and two nieces to Ballater train station.  William Gordon’s horse had bolted when luggage strapped to the front of his vehicle slipped and came into contact with the horse.  The road was steep at that point and the horse careered downhill and collided heavily with Allan Gray’s van.  The occupants of the phaeton were thrown out, William Gordon and the shepherd breaking their collar bones while the ladies escaped with a severe shaking.  Allan Troup was thrown from the top of his van down between his horses, spraining a thumb and bruising an arm.  Both vehicles were badly damaged and the horses injured.  Even in those pre-car days road vehicle accidents were remarkably frequent.

As happens so often with young men in comfortable circumstances, Allan Troup appears to have developed not just a taste for alcohol, but an addiction to it.  He died tragically young at the age of 26 in 1910 at the family home of 3 Deebank, Ballater.  The cause of death was Delerium Tremens and syncope (temporary loss of consciousness due to falling blood pressure).  This must have been a stunning blow to Alexander and Susan, but especially to Allan’s father, who was present when Allan died, since his only son would not be available to inherit the business that Alexander had laboured both hard and successfully to develop.

Delerium Tremens, like many of the manifestations of alcohol abuse, is often treated as a joke but it is no laughing matter.  It is caused by the withdrawal of alcohol from someone who is an addict and is characterised by violent shaking.  Nothing is known of the circumstances of the withdrawal of alcohol from Allan Troup.  Were his parents attempting to cure him of his destructive addiction?  Most alcoholics do not suffer violent withdrawal symptoms but in a minority the effects are severe. In those days, prior to the development of intensive care, the mortality rate for those suffering Delerium Tremens was about 35%.

Alexander Troup dies

Alexander Troup himself was not destined for a long life.  On 6 October 1917 he too expired at the age of 58, the victim of a cerebral haemorrhage.  Four days later he was buried in Tullich Churchyard about a mile east of Ballater.  His obituary in the Aberdeen Journal described him as “one of the best-known personalities in the Deeside District”, but was quite brief when compared with those awarded to much more public figures such as Andrew Gray, Francis and Alexander Sandison and John Davidson.  The chief mourners were Charles Troup, John Troup, Alexander Sandison and John Davidson, the latter two being his brothers-in-law.  Alexander Troup was a serving Councillor at the time of his death and the Ballater Town Council was present at the burial ground.  After Alexander’s early death, his wife, Susan continued to run the business for a short time but she sold it to Mr Robert Smith, butcher, Aboyne in November 1918.  This change was announced in a notice in the Aberdeen Journal, where she thanked her friends and customers for their support over the years and hoped that they would continue to support Mr Smith.  Susan Troup appears to have retired to the West End of Aberdeen, perhaps to be close to her daughter Maude Alexandra, who had remarried to John Gauld, Chief Constable of Aberdeenshire, after the death of her first husband, Alexander Sandison, in 1926.  Susan died, aged 84, in 1940 at Albyn Place, Aberdeen.

Alexander Troup's Will

The date of Alexander Troup’s will was 14^th January 1909, though it was later modified by two codicils as a consequence of his changing circumstances.  In its initial form the will left all furniture and effects in the house to his wife, Susan.  He then expressed a wish that his business should be carried on for the joint and equal benefit of his son, Allan and his wife, Susan.  They were also empowered to sell the business and to split the proceeds equally.  Interestingly, he left nothing to his two daughters Helen Magdalene and Maude Alexandra.  He justified making no provision for them on the grounds that they had both made good marriages and did not need his help.  Alexander’s view of the world might be summarised as follows.  Men own assets and are responsible for passing those assets to sons and for caring for wives.  Daughters are the responsibility of their husbands, who should provide for them.  He hoped that his family would accept his wishes as being fair but he also attached a condition that if anyone challenged his will through the Courts he or she would lose their rights to any share in his assets under the will, which share would then be redistributed to those who were accepting.  This might be seen as a bit vindictive.

Alexander Troup’s only son, Allan died in 1910 and this caused Alexander to modify his wishes by the creation of a codicil, dated 22^nd November 1910, to his will.   Those provisions which dealt with  joint and separate action by his son and his wife and with equal sharing of assets were rescinded and a new arrangement for asset distribution substituted.  Each daughter was now to be paid £100 (about £7500 in 2013 money) and the balance of the estate was to be passed to his wife.  A second codicil was added, dated 6^th February 1913.  It took account of his growing wealth reflected in the acquisition of three properties since the first codicil as written.  Rannagowan, Viewfield, Ballater, was bought as the new family house and two cottages on Golf Road, Ballater, Pearl Cottage and Rosedale Cottage, were acquired as investments.  All three were to be conveyed to Susan.

The personal and moveable estate of Alexander Troup was valued at a just over £1149, on which he paid duty of a little above £34 at the rate of 3%.  There was no estimate of the value of his real estate available but it must have been considerably above this amount, consisting of Rannagowan and the two cottages in Golf Road, the Butcher’s shop in Bridge Street, a stable and coachhouse in Deebank Road and the slaughterhouse at Cornellan, Ballater.  Another interesting revelation was that John Duncan of City Auction Mart, Aberdeen was a debtor to the extent of £119.  This presumably derived from either sheep or cattle sales instructed about the time of Alexander’s death on animal disposals from Old Lodge Farm, which belonged to the Glenmuick estate and where Alexander had been the tenant since at least 1909.

Alexander Troup - triumph and tragedy

The three members of the Troup family, father Charles and sons, John and Alexander were all similar in that they were butchers and all were successful in business but they were clearly differed in their personalities.  Charles was impetuous, quick to anger and lacked self-control, while his sons were more measured and did not ever find themselves on the wrong side of the law.  John, like his father was a freemason and a regular representative on public bodies while Alexander seems to have been much more private, tending to avoid pomp and only accepting public office in special circumstances.  Of the three, Alexander was clearly the one with the highest degree of focus in his outlook, shown by his single-minded dedication to two things, the success of his business and the pleasures of the curling pond.  During his life Alexander generated considerable wealth.  At his death in 1917 his movable assets were valued at £1149, which would be equivalent to about £87,000 in 2013 money, a quite modest sum.  However, his real estate and the goodwill in his business must have been worth many times that amount.  He must have been pleased with the success he achieved in the business sphere, mixing regularly with the great and good of Deeside, even if only to butter them up.  The marriage of his two daughters to wealthy and prominent men must also have given him quiet satisfaction, though he initially took the misogynous view that he no longer needed to factor them into his plan for the distribution of his assets.  Alexander was also good at planning ahead, writing his first will in 1909 at the age of 51.  But his plan for succession which would preserve and develop his precious business fell apart when his only son, Allan succombed to the devil drink.  Did this personal tragedy cause Alexander to reflect on his own priorities?  Did he perhaps wonder if he had given enough attention to guiding Allan, instead of indulging him?  Was he involved more directly in Allan’s demise by witholding alcohol from him and thus precipitating the fatal attack of the DTs?  Or did he simply try to blank out unpalatable realities by burying himself in the business?  It is all speculation and the truth is not known.  However, what would have been true was that if Alexander did harbour any regrets he would have had no time to reflect on them once he suffered a devastating stroke at 7.30am on 6^th October 1917.  He lasted only 5 ½ hours before expiring and probably did not regain consciousness.

Don Fox
20150108
donaldpfox@gmail.com