Records of Murray Johnstone Ltd, investment managers, Glasgow, Scotland

Collection includes:  

• Minute books, 1898-1971;
• Ledgers, 1948-1980;
• Cash books, 1952-1971;
• Journals, 1929-1970;
• Company records, 1902-1981;
• Pension schemes, 1966-1968;
• Written histories, 2007.

• The Scottish Western Co Ltd;
• The Caledonian Trust Co Ltd;
• The Second Great Northern Investment Trust Ltd;
• The Clydesdale Investment Co Ltd;
• The West George Street Property Co Ltd;
• The Astral Property Co;
• Scottish & Universal Investments Ltd;
• Rankinston Coal Co Ltd;
• Strathendrick Investment;
• Spider Investment Co Ltd;
• The Springfield Chair Co Ltd;
• Donne Securities;
• The Highland Tourist Development Co Ltd;
• The Second Scottish Western Investment Co Ltd;
• The Second Clydesdale Investment Co Ltd;
• The Ceylon Estates Investment Association Ltd;
• J & C Harrison Ltd;
• Gowland Steamship Co Ltd;
• MCP Co Ltd;
• F J Stephen Investment Ltd;
• M & M Holdings Ltd;
• Atchley Investment Co Ltd;
• Murray Minor Ltd;
• Alva Estates Ltd;
• Alchornes Trust Ltd;
• Demerara Co Pension Scheme Ltd.

Murray Johnstone traces its origins to around 1905 when vast trade surpluses arose in Scotland due to the industrial revolution of the 19th century. Scotland was considered the engineering capital of the world with shipbuilding, iron, heavy engineering and locomotive construction all leading industries. Brown, Fleming and Murray, Glasgow chartered accountants, formed the Scottish Western Investment Company to invest capital generated in Scotland in the then emerging markets of North and South America. The Scottish Western Investment Company exists today as Murray International Trust, providing a continuous link to the investment roots. Murray Johnstone, throughout its history, has specialized in international investment, being, for example, among the first investment houses to invest in the Americas, Japan and the Pacific Basin in the 1960s.

Murray Johnstone Ltd is a private limited company incorporated in 1968. The company's sole aim, according to their website, is to help investors maximise returns on their investments. They manage money entrusted by individuals, companies and institutions and in the year 2000 have over £4 billion under management. In 1993, they became an autonomous subsidiary of United Asset Management, a US based company which owns over 50 independent investment management companies with a total of around $200bn under management. In October 2000 Aberdeen, the asset management group, bought Murray Johnstone in a deal that made it Scotland's biggest independent fund manager. The main office moved to Queen's Terrace in Aberdeen around this time. Source: Companies House website at http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/

This material is arranged into series, which consist of numbers of items related by format and/or function. Within series, the items are generally arranged chronologically.

Private records deposited by the owners

Permanent loan: Mr A C Clapperton, Murray Johnstone Ltd, 7 West Nile Street, Glasgow, 1988.

Digital file list available in the searchroom or by request.

Manual file level list available at the National Registers of Archives in Edinburgh (NRA(S)3009) and London (NRA31623).

No known copies

None which affect the use of this material

Applications for permission to quote should be sent to the Archivist.

Reproduction subject to usual conditions: educational use and condition of documents

This material has been appraised in line with standard GB 0248 procedures

Received directly from creator.

Apparently, a serious flood in Murray Johnstone's Hope Street office in the late 1970s destroyed a great deal of historical documentation..

No related material

This material is original

No known publications using this material

Description compiled in line with the following international standards: International Council on Archives,ISAD(G) Second Edition, September 1999 and National Council on Archives,Rules for the construction of personal, place and corporate names

Scotland is the location of all place names in the administrative/biographical history element, unless otherwise stated.

Collection catalogued by Hannah Westall, Archives Assistant, 26 March 2000 (fonds level). Converted to Encoded Archival Description by Victoria Stobo, Retroconversion Cataloguing Assistant, 15 May 2012. Edited by Gemma Tougher, Assistant Archivist (Cataloguing), 9 October 2012; and Sam Maddra, Assistant Archivist (Cataloguing), 5 August 2014.