Forestry Memories

Autobiography of James Alan Burns Macdonald OBE – Forestry Years up until 1965

The autobiography is courtesy of Malcolm Macdonald son of James and Forestry Memories is indeed very privileged to receive this copy. The original was typed out by Emily, James’s wife and Linda Macdonald, his daughter law, took on the task of word processing the original foolscap sheets in 1997. The drawings are from James’s sketchpad. Note that the PDF is copyright Linda Macdonald.

James, or J A B Macdonald as he was always referred to in text, has written a lively and interesting story of his life and incidents prior to and over 42 years in forestry. Born in 1900 he started his first Forestry Commission job as a ganger (1922) in the hill squad in Glenbranter Forest, the estate having just been acquired from Sir Harry lauder. In 1965 he retired as Conservator of South Scotland. In between he worked in Forest Research, forest plots surveys, was Forest Research Officer for Scotland, Silviculturist North based in Edinburgh and a war time post as Divisional Officer for West Scotland based in Glasgow. He even achieved a two year interlude to attend Oxford University.

James had a keen eye for detail and his descriptions of work types, forest establishment operations and Forest Research projects over the years are an invaluable historical record. However these descriptions perhaps play second fiddle to his evident strong interest in people and the force behind his extensive portfolio of names of forestry and other folk that he interacted with over the years. His many short pen pictures conjure up vivid images of the personalities, their back grounds and provide a back drop to what are normally just bare lists of names. He undoubtedly had a great empathy with many colleagues, tutors and staff but it did not cause him to spare their blushes if they appeared to perform below the mark!

Below are most of the personnel names that occur within Chapters 1 to 6 and apologies for this writer’s errors in transcriptions, designations and locations. Any comments with corrections and additions are welcome. Note that Chapters 7-10 dealing with family life, holidays and some work in Canada are not included here.

One small point of correction is James’s mention of John Boyd of Inverliever Crown Forest – John died in service in 1920. He has been employed by Sir John Stirling Maxwell at Corrour and Pollock prior to moving to Inverliever as Forester.
The list of forestry connected names below provides a target for any search engines set up to look for a name. The autobiography is contained in the PDF link below this page.

Chapter 1 - West of Scotland Agricultural College, Glasgow 1919-1921
Prof McAlpine - Botany
Mr Mooney – Geology
James Fraser – Forestry Lecturer
Visit to General Archie Stirling of Keir Estate
Mr MacMillan Forester at Keir Estate on practical work placement
J D Robbie at Keir (Later in charge of Newton Nursery)
AN Simpson at Keir (Later in charge at Tulliallan)
William Mungal foreman with fencing contractor
Colonel John Sutherland – Edinburgh Scottish Commissioner
Major A D Hopkinson – Divisional Officer South-West Scotland
Benny Kinnaird – Chief Clerk South West Division

Chapter 2 - Glenbranter Forest and Estate 1922 and 1923
Workers included - Mr Drummond, Mr Laird, William Forester (Ayrshire)
Dugie Turner and Mr McNair - fencers
James Calder (Ganger to Head Forester Carron Valley)
John Smith – owner Kirkhill Estate, Lanarkshire
Angus Graham of Skipness - District officer
Mr Paterson – Forester
Bob Shaw – Forester from Tentsmuir
Sir Harry Lauder – Estate Owner
JM Murray – Divisional Officer all of South Scotland

Edensmuir Forest – Fife 1923-24
Mr Drysdale – Forester
Mr Reid – Retired Head Forester Balbirnie
Peter Clerk – Head Forester Tentsmuir
Dr Steven – Research Officer Scotland

Chapter 3 - Forest Research at Lon Mor and other areas 1925-29
Workers included – Allie Macdonald, the ‘Gerrachan’ and Huack Cameron
Dr Mark Anderson – Forest Research Officer Scotland
Roy L Robinson – Technical Commissioner
James Macdonald – Forest Research Officer Scotland
John Cameron – Head Forester Inchnacardoch Forest formerly Lord Strathcona’s Forester at Glencoe
John Gunn – Assistant Forester later at Dornoch Forest
George Home – a Hawick man District officer Western Inverness-shire
Frank Scott – Divisional Officer North Scotland
Lord Lovat – Chairman
Roy Robinson – Technical Commissioner
J F MacIntyre – Forester at Newcastleton -Lochaber man trained under Cameron at Glencoe
Jock Kennedy – Forester Glen Nevis then Glen Righ – a Lochaber man
Charlie Lamont – Edinburgh Botanic Gardens very expert Foreman

Chapter 4 – Oxford, Foreign Tours and Sample Plots 1929-1932
HM Steven – lecturer on silviculture and Chief Research Officer
G V Jacks – Soils man from Rothamstead
Mark L Anderson – lecturer and Chief Research Officer
Robin Clarke – Soils supervisor
Professor Troup – Sivilcultural systems
A H Lloyd – Forest Engineering and Surveying
D I Fergusson – Lecturer in Edinburgh
Hiley – Economics; Dr R N Chrystal – entomology; Mr W R Day – pathology
Michael V Edwards ex Burma; (See Comments) R E Fossey; Henry Beresford Peirse – Director Scotland
Andrew Watt – Edinburgh; Hamish Maxwell; Alan Connell;
Jock Maxwell-Macdonald; Sir John Sutherland; Neil Graham Menzies from Haliburton; Mat Robson – Nigeria and Edinburgh; Kenneth MacDonald from Kinlochewe –Northern Nigeria; C W Scott; T N Stoate; Michael Milford at Dulnain Bridge plotting

Chapter 5 – Research Officer Scotland - Silviculturist North based at Edinburgh 1932- 1951
W H Guillebaud – Chief Research Officer
Dr A B Stewart – Chemistry MacAuley; Dr M C Rayner – Mycorrhiza specialist
James Farquar (Farquhar) – Nursery Forester
James Fraser – Divisional Officer then Conservator North Scotland
‘Irish’ Gibson; Frank Oliver;
O J Sangar- roving forest inspector
Roy L Robinson; Andrew Crawford – Private Woodlands Officer North;
A H Gosling; John Zehetmayr; G G Stewart; Hummel;
John Matthews – FC Genticist
Malcolm Lawrie – Chief Research Officer;
J H Thomson - Research Forester Benmore
Murdo MacDonald – Research Forester Mabie; William MacDonald – Research Forester Tulliallan; Duncan Campbell – Research Forester Newton;
Jeff Bartlett – Research Forester Ardross; John Weatherall – Research Forester Allerton.
Alex MacKenzie from Achnashellach – Sample Plots.
Zoe Sinclair- Typist; Milly Morrison – Typist;
Dorothy Pickering – Typist; Janet Sticks – Chief Clerk;
Isobel Colquhoun; James Macdonald.

Chapter 6 – Glasgow as Divisional Officer West - Wartime interlude 1939-1945
Dr Mac Queen Cowan; Sir James Calder
Jock Kennedy – Head Forester Inverliever; O J Sangar; Jock Maxwell-Macdonald; ‘The Bohunk’ tractor in loch; A H Gosling; Lord Jowett: Roy L Robinson
Lawrie Sinclair – forester Glen Duror; Bill Ferguson – Head Forester Knapdale; Duncan Mackay – Forester Knapdale; A N Simpson from Dundee – Tulliallan Nursery
Tom Edwardson ex Sierra Leone - District Officer; John James – District Officer Aberfoyle; Hugh Dier – District Officer; Kathleen Stewart – Typist; Davie Ross – Forester.
Harry Watson – District Officer Cowal in war.
Hugh Cameron – successor to John Boyd at Inverliever Forest – then Barcaldine Forest
Alistair Cameron – Head Forester Strathyre followed by Hugh MacKinnon native of Eigg
Tom Penny – Foreman in-charge Lennox Forest; Mr Hyem - accountant Glasgow wartime

Chapter 7 – Dumfries as Conservator South Scotland 1951-1965
James Macdonald – Director Research; James Thom – Deputy Director Scotland
James Fraser – Conservator North; Jock Maxwell-Macdonald
R E Fossey – Conservancy Supply; R (Bob) R Donald i/c afforestation;
W (Irish) N Gibson i/c harvesting all three Assistant Conservators
Willie Forsythe - Northeast England; Bob Donald assistant Instructor at Benmore School then District Officer Newton Stewart then Assistant Conservator
Norman Brown – Peeblesshire District Officer; W N(Irish) Gibson – North Scotland Division, Land Acquisition, Assist Conservator South Scotland
Lord Radnor - FC Chairman
Bill Elliot and Alex Cowan – Job Costings; Jimmy Laidlaw from Gatehouse - Personnel Officer
Sir Arthur Gosling then Sir Henry Beresford Peirse – Director General; Archie Ross followed by John Dickson – Director Scotland
Bob Swan - Forester Watermeeting Forest; Bill Fergusson – District Officer Dalbeattie; Jimmy Watson - Forester Dalbeattie; W Murray – Forester Glengap
Sydney Lloyd – Forester at Lauriston Forest; Willie Hugh Mackay – Forester Fleet nursery; Cairn Edward additional land acquired from Mrs Murray-Usher

Dugie Graham-Campbell, Graham Jeffries and then John McGarva District Officers at Dalry; Charles Parley – Head Forester at Cairn Edward; Hugh MacMillan – Head Forester Kirroughtree Nursery: Alex D MacRae – Head Forester Glen Trool

John MacNab – District officer Glentrool and Wigtownshire
Duncan Cameron – Head Forester Dundeugh Forest
Wigtownshire forest of Kilsure under Duncan McRae
Murdo Chisholm i/c Carrick Forest; Jock Melville i/c Selmuir Forest
Bill McGivern i/c Edgarhope Forest
Tom MacGeorge followed by Tom Farmer – Chief Clerk in Conservancy
Alex Cowan from Aberdeen Office; Miss Halliday and Mary Lind – head typist.
Tom Taylor - Commissioner; Lord Taylor of Gryfe - FC Chairman
George Ryle – Deputy Director General; Lord Dalton.

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Groups: Forestry Areas, Groups of people

Group: Forestry Areas - 3222 pictures

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