John Maclaurin, Lord Dreghorn

The Hon John Maclaurin, Lord Dreghorn FRSE (1734-1796) was a Scottish advocate who rose to be a Senator of the College of Justice. In 1783 he was one of the founders of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.^[1] He was a prolific author on both legal and literary issues.^[2]

Life

He was born on 15 December 1734 the son of the noted Scots mathematician, Colin Maclaurin, and his wife, Anne Stewart. He was educated at the High School in Edinburgh 1745 to 1747 then studied Law at Edinburgh University. He qualified as an advocate in 1756.^[3] Maclaurin lived in Dreghorn Castle, acquired from the Home family.^[4]

In 1781 he was elected Clan Chief of the Clan Labhran (McLaren). In 1788 he was created a Senator of the College of Justice and given the title Lord Dreghorn, after his family home.

He died on Christmas Eve, 24 December 1796. He is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard in central Edinburgh.

Publications

• Apology for the Writers against the Tragedy of Douglas (1757)
• Hampden (1757)
• The Philosopher’s Opera (1757)
• The Keekeiad (1760)
• Considerations on the Right of Patronage (1766)
• Consideration on the Nature and Origin of Literary Property (1767)
• Essays in Verse (1769)
• Observations on some Points of Law with a System of the Judicial Law of Moses (1769)
• The Story of Zeyn Akasnam, Prince of Balsora (1770)
• Arguments and Decisions in the High Court (1774)

Family

In 1762 he married Esther Cunningham (d.1780).

References