Macqueen & Findlater, Solicitors, Aberdeen

The fonds constitutes the business records of the solicitors' firms of Edmonds & MacQueen (1890 - 1895), MacQueen & Knox (1895 - 1910) and MacQueen & Findlater (1910 - 1971), as well as the business records of E.R. Lumsden, another Aberdeen solicitor. It consists of business ledgers and cash books as well as sederunt books for a number of trusts administered by the firms. It also contains the records of external committees or bodies on which firm members served, notably that of the Forces Help Society (1902 - 1964).

John Otto MacQueen ( - 1907) was a solicitor before the Supreme Courts. A graduate of Edinburgh University he worked in Edinburgh before going into partnership in Aberdeen with Dr Francis Edmond, advocate, in the firm of Edmonds and Macqueen between 1865 and 1890, along with Francis' sons Alexander and John, advocates (see DD457). Macqueen then operated his own business until entering a partnership with Alexander Knox, solicitor, in 1895 as Macqueen and Knox. He was legal advisor to the Aberdeen School Board and law agent to the Caledonian Railway Company in the Aberdeen district. He also served on Aberdeen County Council as the representative for Dyce, Fintray and Kinellar, and on Aberdeen District Committee.

John Ellison Macqueen was born in Aberdeen 3 June 1875, the son of John Otto Macqueen of Aberdeen, S.S.C.. He was educated at Fettes College and Aberdeen University, 1891-95. He was apprenticed firstly to his father and secondly to Melville & Lindsay, W.S., Edinburgh. From 1900 he practised in partnership with his father and Alexander Knox, solicitor, the firm being called Macqueen & Knox. From 1910 he worked with Henry James Findlater, W.S., (d. 1936) and the firm became Macqueen & Findlater, advocates. He died on the Western Front on the 25 September 1915, serving as Lieutenant Colonel in the 6th Bn Gordon Highlanders.

Macqueen & Findlater were based at 34 Bridge Street, Aberdeen.

· W& F Haldane

· Edmonds and Macqueen 1865 – 1890 - with Francis Edmond Junior (1842-1872)

· Macqueen 1890 - 1895

· Maqueen and Knox 1895 -1910

· Macqueen and Findlater 1910 -

Open

Open for consultation at Old Aberdeen House, open Mon-Wed 9:30-12:30 and 13:30-16:30. It is advisable to make an appointment.

https://archives.aberdeencity.gov.uk/CalmView/

Part catalogued by S Convery, 2001; added to CALM and additional cataloguing work done in 2020 by Abigail Joncker and Katy Kavanagh. Additional box listing by Ashleigh Black 2021/2022. Cataloguing completed by Kim Smith March 2022.

There was a note from the 2001 cataloguing work that one box of papers relating to the estate of Robert Camperdown Haldane of Shetland (1848 - 1914) had been transferred to Shetland Islands Archives in March 2002: from contacting Shetland Archives in 2022 this appears not to have been the case.

The collection was appraised in situ, before being boxed and transferred to archival custody. Petty cash books and all wet-copy account books were scheduled to be destroyed as were all boxes of loose clients' papers from the 1950s through to 1970s. Following appraisal of the in-coming and out-going letter books series, it was decided that these too would not be retained. All records subsequently transferred as part of accession 414 have been permanently retained.

The records were transferred into the custody of staff at Aberdeen Central Library in the late 1970s and moved to attic space in Torry Library. They remained there prior to their permanent deposit with Aberdeen City Archives in 2001 (accession 414).