John Bruce

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John Bruce (b. 9 June 1837, Sandwick, d. 4 July 1907, Edinburgh) was a landlord and merchant who lived at Sandlodge in Sandwick. He was a bitter opponent of the crofting legislation of the 1880s, and unsuccessfully pursued the captors of the whales in the Hoswick whale case of 1888-1890.

He was most commonly referred to as John Bruce the Younger

He was also the owner of the smack Columbine, which drifted to Norway with only Betty Mouat onboard.

Bruce was elected the member for Dunrossness South on the Zetland County Council at its inception in 1890. He was then elected to the position of Convener of the County, the first person to hold the role, which he retained until his death in 1907.

Bruce purchased Lunna House, the Hunter of Lunna family estate from Robert Hunter Bell in May 1893 for the sum of £9740.00.

Political Career

External Links

Conveners
New position Convener of the
Zetland County Council

1890-1907
Succeeded by
John Anderson
Conveners of the Zetland County Council
Councillors John Bruce (1890-1907) • John Anderson (1907-1910) • James Grierson (1911-1913) • Robert D. Ganson (1914-1917) • John W. Robertson (1918-1923) • Henry Mouat (1924-1927) • James A. Smith (1928-1929) • Magnus Shearer (1930-1935) • Thomas Johnston (1935-1936) • William McDougall (1936-1937) • Adam Halcrow (1937-1938) • Edward Adie (1938-1943) • Robert J. H. Ganson (1944-1947) • William Thomson (1947-1955) • Prophet Smith (1955-1960) • Tom Henderson (1960-1963) • William Hamilton (1963-1967) • Robert A. Johnson (1967-1970) • Edward Thomason (1970-1973) • George Blance (1973-1975)
Zetland County Council
Constituency created Member for
Dunrossness South

1890-1907
Succeeded by
William Fotheringham
Dunrossness South County Councillors
Councillors John Bruce (1890-1907) • William Fotheringham (1907-1919) • John Irvine (1919-1919) • William McDougall (1919-1922) • William Leslie (1922-1929) • William McDougall (1929-1937) • George Leslie (1937-1945) • James Bairnson (1945-1955) • Magnus R. Flaws (1952-1955) • James Gordon (1955-1964) • Raymond Bentley (1964-1975)