Author: Douglas, Francis
Biography:
DOUGLAS, Francis (1718/19- c. 1790: ODNB)
pseudonym A Farmer
Baptised on 6 Feb. 1719, he was the son of Robert Douglas and lived at Logie Coldstone, near Aberdeen. The name of his mother was probably Jean (Milne) Douglas. He was apprenticed to an Aberdeen baker and, on completing his training, moved to work in London in the 1730s. By 1743 he was back in Aberdeen where he married Elizabeth Ochterloney on 22 Apr. 1745. They had seven children. In 1748 Douglas established a bookselling business, and his success in this venture led him to set up a printing house with William Murray (a druggist). They published the Jacobite newspaper, the Aberdeen Intelligencer from 1752-57 when Murray withdrew from the partnership. Douglas commenced farming near Drumoak in the 1760s. During the Douglas Peerage case, he supported the winning side and was rewarded with the life-rent of Abbotsinch, a farm near Paisley. He died there and was buried in the churchyard at Paisley Abbey. SBTI gives the date of his death as 1786 but findagrave.com indicates it may have been as early as 1782. (ODNB 26 Oct 2018; ancestry.co.uk 26 Oct 2018, 23 Dec. 2024; SBTI) SR