Watson

Clan Crest: Two hands holding the trunk of an oak tree sprouting and the hands issuing out of clouds

Clan Motto: Inspirata Floruit (It Has Flourished Beyond Expectation)

Origin of Name: Son of Walter (Watt)

Region: Lowlands

Clan Chief: None, armigerous clan

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Watson Clan History

Watson is derived from Walter, as are many other names such as Wat, Watt MacWattie, Macouat, and MacWatson. The name is fairly common throughout Scotland and England (ranked 20th most common in 2003), but is more strongly associated with certain areas such as Aberdeen and Kinkardineshire.

The Watsons are related to the Forbes family of Angus and the Buchanans of Stirlingshire and western Perthshire.

- Watsons are landowners in Edinburgh in the fourteenth century.

– 1402 According to the records, a Robert Watsoun lives in Aberdeen.

- In 1450, Nicholas Watson of Dalkieth owned property near Arbroath.

- Sir Donald Watsone was a church presbyter in the diocese of Moray in 1493.

- 1494 Walter Watson was a burgess and landowner in Dumbarton, and several of his descendants rose through the ranks to become bailies and provosts.

The name became more common in the 16th century, especially in the Lowlands and the north-east of Scotland. Wattie was a popular name in the Aberdeen area, and in a Banffshire fishing village, 225 of the 300 residents were named Watt. The surname McWatters is almost exclusively found in Caithness, where it is believed they were Sinclair followers.

George Watson established 'George Watson's College,' now known simply as 'Watsons', in 1741. His parents died when he was very young, but his aunt sent him to study bookkeeping in Rotterdam. In 1695, he was appointed chief accountant to the Bank of Scotland and became a prominent educational philanthropist in Edinburgh.

Engraving of Watt and Boulton's steam engine design.

The most well-known person with this name is most likely James Watt. He was a mechanical engineer and inventor, best known for developing the modern steam engine. In Charles Murray's book Human Accomplishments, he was ranked first, tied with Edison, out of 229 significant figures in the history of technology.

Robert Watson-Watt, a descendant of James Watt, is credited with developing radar from theory to a practical system that was described as critical to victory in the Battle of Britain. The Lord Lyon has confirmed that the clan does have a chief, but the title has not been claimed since it was held by James Watson of Saughton in 1818, according to the Clan Watson Society of Canada.

Watson Places & People

Clan Watson Locations:

Aberdour Castle is located in Fife. Robert Watson of Muirhouse occupied it until 1791; it is now in the care of Historic Scotland.

Pitcruvie Castle, Fife, was owned by the Watsons in the 17th century.

Clan Watson Individuals:

George Watson (1654–1723).

George Watson, the founder of George Watson's College, was a well-known Scottish accountant. George Watson, born in Scotland, was orphaned at a young age and sent to Rotterdam in 1672 to study bookkeeping. He returned to Edinburgh in 1676 to become Sir James Dick's private secretary, and was later appointed chief accountant to the Bank of Scotland when it was founded in 1695.

Watson amassed considerable personal wealth, and in gratitude for the assistance he received as a youth, he left a generous sum in his will to the Merchant Company of Edinburgh, with specific sums set aside for educating pupils at the Merchant Maiden Hospital, the Trades Maiden Hospital, and Heriot's Hospital (now George Heriot's School).

A further £144.95,000 was bequeathed for the establishment of a new charitable school ("hospital," as they were then known) for the purpose of "entertaining and educating the male children and grandchildren of decayed merchants in Edinburgh." George Watson's College was to be established here. That school, like George Heriot's, is still in use today, and "Watson's," as it is known, holds an annual "Founder's Day."

George Watson is buried in Edinburgh's Greyfriars Kirkyard, and while the exact location of his remains is unknown, a memorial plaque can be found on a wall in the graveyard's north-west corner.

Sir John Watson Gordon (1788-1864).

Captain Watson, R.N.'s eldest son, was a Scottish painter. He was educated with the intention of joining the Royal Engineers, but his natural taste for art quickly developed, and his father was persuaded to let him pursue it as a profession.

Throughout his career, he painted many famous people, including Sir Walter Scott, who sat for his first portrait in 1820. Sir Archibald Alison, Dr Chalmers, Sir David Brewster, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie, and Sir Alexander Hope were among those honored.

John Watson Gordon was an early member of the Royal Scottish Academy, and was elected president in 1850; at the same time, he was appointed limner for Scotland to the queen, and was knighted. He had been an associate of the Royal Academy since 1841, and in 1851 he was elected a royal academician.

Andrew Watson was born in 1857 and died in 1902.

The world's first black association football player to represent his country at the international level. Between 1881 and 1882, he was capped three times for Scotland and was regarded as one of the top ten most important players of the nineteenth century.

Andrew Watson was the son of Peter Miller, a wealthy Scottish sugar planter, and Rose Watson, a local girl. He attended King's College School before going on to study philosophy, mathematics, and engineering at the University of Glasgow, where he began his football career.

On April 14, 1880, he was chosen to play for Glasgow against Sheffield. He then joined Queen's Park F.C., Britain's largest football club at the time, and later became their secretary. He led the team to several Scottish Cup victories, becoming the first black player to do so. Watson quickly earned three international caps for Scotland, recording three significant victories.

The color of his skin had no bearing on his peers, and there is no historical evidence of racism on the part of the Scottish Football Association.

Watson Tartans

Watson, the Elder

Watson Contemporary

Watson Crest & Coats of Arms

Watson Family Crest

Crest Description: Two hands holding the trunk of a sprouting oak tree, and the hands aresuing from the clouds.

Coats of Arms for Watson:

A word about Coats of Arms:

A coat of arms is granted to an individual under Scottish heraldic law (with the exception of civic or corporate arms). A 'family coat of arms' does not exist. With the exceptions noted above, the arms depicted below are personal arms. Only the person who has been granted these weapons has the right to use them.

Watson, Earl of Rockingham's arms are as follows: Argent, a chevron azure between three martlets sable as many crescents or. Motto: "Mea Gloria Fides" ("Trust is My Renown"), which is displayed in large Roman capitals on the frieze of Wentworth Woodhouse's classical pediment.

Watson, Alan.

Arms: Argent, a Proper fructed oak tree Or growing out of a mound in base Vert, surmounted by a fess brettessed the crenelles semicircular, Purpure, charged with an hourglass Or.