Appendix 2: Named individuals

Photo by Mike Castro Demaria on Unsplash

The Bensons

The Blakes

The Rossiters

Others

Dr John Anderson Graham

Mr Purdie

Mr David Paterson

Mr Harry Emblem

Comments

Chapter 1: Prologue

Advertisement on the side of a building in Borough, London In September 1971 Kenneth William Benson (“Ken”) is driven away from Heathrow Airport by his brother Charles (and his girlfriend). As they took the exit onto the motorway a large sign proclaimed, “Take Courage”. Ken who had just flown in from Calcutta where the temperature was a high 20C in comparison to London at the lower end of the scale, thought Britain must be a truly terrible place, if such a sign was necessary to stir the hearts of those arriving. Charles later informed Ken that the sign was in fact an advert for Courage Bitter, something for which Ken never developed a taste. And so my Dad arrived in Britain to begin his new life. The Benson brothers had returned to “the old country” from where ...

Chapter 2: Roots

Scotland The story begins in the Land of the Brave; it begins with my great grandfathers, William Benson and Charles Ramage Blake. Both were born in Scotland within 10 years of each other. William Benson William was born in Aberdeen on 18 March 1875, the middle son of William Henry Benson and Isabella Speid. William Henry had made his career in the Caledonian Railway, working his way up from a railway clerk in the goods’ department to the position of superintendent. William’s elder brother, James Speid, began his career as a solicitor’s general clerk, eventually qualifying as a solicitor. James is listed on the Roll of Honour of Aberdeen University, which shows that he served as a Private from November 1914 in the 1st Volunteer Battalion Gordon Highlanders (previously the City of Aberdeen Volun...

Chapter 3: A very brief history of Gillanders

Both taken from Gladstone, J.S. (1910). History of Gillanders, Arbuthnot & Co and Ogilvy, Gillanders & Co. It is worth saying more about the firm through which Chas gained work. I will try to be brief, but I highly recommend M G Manton’s thesis, The Rise of the British Managing Agencies in North Eastern India 1836-1918, [1] for more about the firm and others operating in India. Founded by a family of corn merchants, who moved from Leith to Liverpool, the Gladstones had established themselves through trading with both the West and East Indies. They owned 6 ships which they licensed to the East India Company, and they soon sent their own man to India to scout out future possibilities for themselves. Unfortunately the junior partner George Grant had to return to the UK due to ill health and this led to a cousin of John Gladstone’s wife, F.M. Gillanders continuing the work in India and giving his name to the firm (both in the UK and India) which claimed to...

Search This Blog