The Riddell Collection of Wax Seals:
Seal Life Stories: the remarkable careers of 23 individuals from the Riddell Collection of Wax Seals
2: john glassford of douglaston (1750 – 1811)
John Glassford of Douglaston with his family [Glasgow Museums: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Born in Paisley in 1715, John initially followed his father James into the textile business, before putting the majority of his interests into tobacco from 1750. Trading with New England, he built up a fleet of twenty five ships with 21 stores in Virginia and Maryland. It is estimated that in 1774 he earned £1.5 million (£300 million today), a fortune based upon the exploitation of enslaved people. He also had banking interests, helping establish the Glasgow Arms Bank by 1750 and the Thistle Bank in 1761.
John was married three times, first to Ann Coates in 1743, then to Ann Nisbet in 1752, and third, to Margaret Mackenzie on 24 November 1768.
In 1760 he bought Shawfield Mansion, and the following year acquired the Douglaston Estate from the Grahame family.