Author: McLaren, William
Biography:
MCLAREN, William (1772-1832: ODNB)
He was born at Paisley but his parents’ names are unknown. (His mother had been married previously and her married name was Scadlock; William’s half-brother was James Scadlock [q.v.]) He trained to be a handloom weaver but was attracted to a literary life; on inheriting from his mother after her death, he set off for Glasgow hoping to attend university although it is not known if he matriculated. Returning to Paisley, he opened a public house, married, and had a family. With Robert Tannahill (q.v.) he established the Paisley Burns Club and became its first president (he is credited with a role in the evolution of the now-traditional toast to Burns’s “immortal memory”). In 1815 he published an edition of Tannahill’s poems with a memoir of the poet and, in 1818, he did the same for James Scadlock. Towards the end of his life, poverty took him back to his loom and he died at Paisley, a victim of the 1832 plague epidemic. (ODNB 28 Feb 2020)
Other Names:
- W. McLaren