Sir Alexander Stewart Stevenson (9 April 1860 – 24 May 1936) was a Scottish councillor and a lay preacher.

Life

Alexander Stevenson was born on 9 April 1860 at Dalry, Ayrshire, Scotland. His family moved and he was educated at Grange School,

Bo'ness Borrowstounness, commonly known as Bo'ness ( ), is a town and former burgh and seaport on the south bank of the Firth of Forth in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically part of the county of West Lothian (historic), ...

, in West Lothian. He became a jeweller and watchmaker and entered

Edinburgh Town Council The politics of Edinburgh are expressed in the deliberations and decisions of the City of Edinburgh Council, in elections to the council, the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament. Also, as Scotland's capital city, Edinburgh is host to the S ...

as a Liberal in 1900. He was Convener of the Electricity Committee 1904–1906 and 1909–1915; Magistrate 1906–1909; City Treasurer 1922–1925; and

Lord Provost A lord provost () is the convenor of the local authority, the civic head and the lord-lieutenant of one of the principal cities of Scotland. The office is similar to that of a lord mayor. Only the cities of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Stirlin ...

1926–1929. He was created a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

on 16 February 1928 at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

. In 1929 he was awarded an honorary LLD by the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

at the same ceremony as the German theologian

Albert Schweitzer Ludwig Philipp Albert Schweitzer (; 14 January 1875 – 4 September 1965) was a German and French polymath from Alsace. He was a theologian, organist, musicologist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician. As a Lutheran minister, ...

was also awarded an honorary degree. On 28 November 1929 he was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of the City and County of the City of Edinburgh. With his father James Stevenson (1824–1887) having been a missionary with the Scottish Coast Mission it was natural that he was a lay-preacher with the Grassmarket Mission in the Leamington Terrace Church in Edinburgh, the first Scottish

United Church A united church, also called a uniting church, is a denomination formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestantism, Protestant Christian denominations, a number of which come from separate and distinc ...

, which later became the Bruntsfield Church. Twice capped as a Scottish international bowls player, he was part of Rink 3 in the first ever international competition between England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. This took place on 13th, 14th, and 15 July 1903, on the Crystal Palace and Wandsworth Greens, London. Although tied on points, England beat Scotland on shots. He died in Edinburgh on 24 May 1936.

Legacy

A number of streets in Edinburgh were named after him in the area which he represented on the council: *Stevenson Road (10 September 1926) *Stevenson Avenue (5 May 1927) *Stevenson Drive (21 October 1927) *Stevenson Terrace (18 October 1934) *Stevenson Grove (29 April 1937)

Political Relatives

* John Keith McBroom Laird (1907-1985) Canadian Senator - 1st cousin, twice removed *

James Stevenson, 1st Baron Stevenson James Stevenson, 1st Baron Stevenson, GCMG (2 April 1873 – 10 June 1926), known as Sir James Stevenson, Bt, between 1917 and 1924, was a British businessman and civil servant. Education Stevenson was educated at the Kilmarnock Academy. It w ...

(1873-1926) Member of House of Lords - Nephew *

Stewart Stevenson James Alexander Stewart Stevenson (''Gaelic: Seamus Alasdair Stiùbhart MacSteafain''; born 15 October 1946) is a Scottish former politician who served as Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change from 2007 to 2010 and Minister ...

(1946- ) Member of the Scottish Parliament - Great Nephew

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Alexander 1860 births 1936 deaths Knights Bachelor Lord provosts of Edinburgh Scottish Liberal Party politicians Scottish jewellers 19th-century Scottish clergy People from Dalry, North Ayrshire Scottish watchmakers (people) Scottish knights Scottish male bowls players 20th-century Scottish clergy People from Bo'ness Councillors in Edinburgh