John Boswell (abt. 1674 - 1749)

Born about 1674 in Auchinleck, Ayrshire, Scotland

Ancestors

Descendants

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Biography

John became a Writer to the Signet in Edinburgh, acquired a fortune and bought back the ancestral home of Balmuto Castle in Fife. He married in 1726 Margaret Henderson who died in 1790. They had five children, one of whom married Alexander Boswell, Lord Auchinleck, who was her first cousin, and became the mother of James Boswell, the famous author. ^[1]

John Boswell W.S. of Edinburgh by his great diligence and knowledge in his profession, acquired a handsome fortune. He purchased the estate of Balmuto, the ancient inheritance of his ancestors, from Andrew Boswell of Balmuto in 1722. This Andrew has been blamed for selling the estate and called a bad economist etc which, when one reads the whole case, is not justified. The estate was burdened with debts incurred by his predecessors, this once great estate having been continually reduced by the portions allotted to the numerous children of these predecessors, a number of whom were females who took their portions to other families. With this constant reduction and consequently a lessened income there was little reduction in style and expenses which led to debt, culminating to a point when Andrew took possession, and which he was utterly powerless to prevent, and which led to the ruin of his family. On the sale of Balmuto, he reserved to himself and his heirs all below ground such as mines, coal and minerals, but whether this valuable asset ever was claimed the writer has no knowledge. The heirs and their posterity are entirely lost; some of the grandchildren were in Australia and America, and some of these descendants from Australia came to England and one is now living in London, but can give no coherent account of their individual descent. This John Boswell married Margaret, a daughter of Claud Henderson of Fordel in Fife. There must have been some previous alliance with the Hendersons for I find that one John Boswell was buried in the Henderson tomb in the old Greyfriars Church, 1692. There is a full-length portrait of this John Boswell in the hall gallery now at Balmuto. By his wife he had issue, four children:

1. 1st Anne who died young
2. 2nd Margaret who also died young
3. 3rd Elizabeth who married Sir Alexander Boswell, Lord Auchinleck but had no

issue. It was rather remarkable that this marriage came off the same day that James Boswell, son of Lord Auchinleck, and Johnson's biographer married Margaret Montgomery. Each was displeased with the other marriage.

1. 4th Claud Boswell, b 1742, d 1825 ^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ The Boswell Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, GEN MSS 89.
2. ↑ The Boswell History Vol 2 Ch30 by J J Boswell 1906, unpublished manuscript held at Fondazione Sella in Biella, Italy, a copy is also held at Yale University