James Norman Davidson, 1911-1972

James Norman Davidson was born on 5 March 1911 in Edinburgh, where his father occupied the position of Treasurer of the Carnegie Trust for Scotland. The Edinburgh background and the completely Scottish ancestry had a profound effect on Norman Davidson’s development and his loyalty to Scotland was an important feature of his personality; it influenced him throughout his life. His paternal grandfather, James Davidson, came from the Buchan district of Aberdeenshire and as H.M. Officer of Fisheries was posted for duty in succession to five Scottish fishing ports. Norman’s father, also James Davidson, born in Peterhead in 1873, was the first of four children. He attended the local school in Burghead, but was sent for his secondary education to Elgin Academy, some ten miles away, returning home to Burghead at weekends. On leaving school he trained in a law office in Elgin and in 1896 he joined the firm of Ross and Connel, solicitors in Dunfermline. The principal partner of that firm was Mr (later Sir) John Ross who was a close friend of Andrew Carnegie, the famous industrialist and humanitarian who also hailed from Dunfermline. When the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland was set up in 1901, Ross became its first Treasurer. Shortly afterwards the Trust moved its offices to Edinburgh and James Davidson joined Ross as Assistant Treasurer. When Ross retired in 1923 James Davidson succeeded as Treasurer, a post he held until 1944. He died in 1956.