John Dalrymple, 10th Earl of Stair
John Dalrymple (1819-1903), 10th Earl of Stair,
represented Wigtownshire in Parliament from 1841-1856, was Governor
of the Bank of Scotland from 1870 to 1903 and acted as Chancellor
of theUniversity ofGlasgow from 1893 to 1903. He became Earl
of Stair on the death of his father in 1864.
Like many other local landowners Dalrymple had a strong interest
in archaeology. He joined the Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland in 1856 and in 1877 was elected President of the newly
formed Ayrshire and Wigtonshire Archaeological Association.
In 1870 he excavated the crannog site onHeronIslandin the Black
Loch, Castle Kennedy and ten years later he provided the workforce
for the excavation at Barhapple crannog, Glenluce. In 1856 he
published a note on a prehistoric bronze axe which had been found
during peat cutting on estate ground at Corsewall, Kirkcolm.
Tenants on the Stair Estates were encouraged to report any
archaeological finds and the 10th Earl built up an
impressive collection of local antiquities. In 1879, encouraged by
Rev. George Wilson of Glenluce, another local antiquarian, he
donated a large number of prehistoric finds to the Society of
Antiquities inEdinburgh. Much of his collection, however, was
kept atLochinchCastle. This was given toStranraerMuseum in
1964.