Andrew Usher
Andrew Usher | |
---|---|
Born | 5 January 1826 |
Died | 1 November 1898 | (aged 72)
Citizenship | British |
Andrew UsherII (5 January 1826 – 1 November 1898) was aScottishwhiskydistiller and blender.[1]
Background[edit]
Usher's father, whose name he shared, Andrew Usher (1782 – 1855), was a prominent Scottish brewer who had experimented with the blending of whisky in the 1840s. He had two sons, Andrew II and John. Andrew Usher II was made a partner of Andrew Usher & Co ofEdinburghin the late 1840s. He was also the grandson of James Usher of Toftfield who sold the property toSir Walter Scottwho bought it for his close friendAdam Fergusonand re- named the house Huntly Burn.[2]Andrew Usher II perfected the eventual blending of whisky and as such is sometimes called the 'father of Scottish whisky'.[3]The subsequent blending and mass distillation enabled whisky to grow from a drink rarely consumed outside the United Kingdom, to be one of mass export.
Andrew Usher II was one of the three founders of theNorth British Distillery;the other two were John Crabbie ofCrabbie's Green Gingerand William Sanderson, whisky blender ofVat 69,who both served as directors of the NB distillery.[4]Andrew Usher II was the first Chairman of the NB Distillery, serving from its start in 1885 until shortly before his death on 1 November 1898. Andrew Usher II and his brother John Usher, as partners in Andrew Usher & Co, were also the proprietors of the Edinburgh Distillery.
Philanthropy[edit]
Among his many bequests to Edinburgh and Scotland was theUsher Hall,which became Scotland's premier concert hall.[5]It is recorded that he donated £100,000 to the city specifically to fund the new concert hall on 23 June 1896.[5]A bust of Usher is located in the hall at the entrance to the Grand Circle.[5]He died before the hall was completed and it was later opened by his widow.[5]
Usher also played a major role in improving the fishing village and harbour ofSt Abbsin Berwickshire.[6]He purchased the Northfield estate on the edge of the village, enlarging and finishing the building of a countryside manor by the coastal shore in 1892.[6]He considered the local public hall inadequate and subsequently funded a new village hall and school, which was constructed in 1887 and is now occupied by the St Abbs visitor centre.[6]Usher also gave funds for the building of the local church in 1892 and the extension of the outer harbour wall in 1890.[6]
Death[edit]
Usher is buried inthe Grange Cemetery, Edinburghwith his first wife, Elizabeth Langmuir Miller (1826-1876); his second wife, Marion Blackwood Murray (1847-1925); and several of his children. Usher's city centre family house is now a converted pub (named the Pear Tree and Andrew Usher & Co) located near theUniversity of Edinburgh.[7]His obituaryThe Glasgow Herald 02 Nov 1898 page 4.
References[edit]
- ^"Whisky Promotion".Ancestry.com.Retrieved31 October2016.
- ^Glasgow Herald 02 Nov 1898 P.4 accessed 15 June 2024
- ^"The Usher Name".Andrew Usher & Company. Archived fromthe originalon 1 November 2016.Retrieved31 October2016.
- ^"History".North British Distillery.Retrieved31 October2016.
- ^abcd"History".Usher Hall.Retrieved31 October2016.
- ^abcd"St Abbs".The Visitor Centre.Retrieved31 October2016.
- ^"Fall and rise of Usher".The Scotsman.Retrieved31 October2016.