Christiana Thow (1836-1897)
Christiana Thow (1836-1897) of Craigmore, West Ferry, near Dundee, and Margaret Thow (d. 1885) were sisters who desired to found a scholarship at the University of St Andrews in memory of their father, Thomas Thow (1798-1879). Their father was born in Dundee in 1798 to John Thow, a Dundee draper merchant, and Margaret Dickson. Thomas Thow studied at the University of St Andrews for a year and then read law at the University of Edinburgh. He became a solicitor in Dundee and married Christiana Watson (d. 1881), the sister of Patrick Watson, a wealthy Dundee silk-draper merchant, who was to retire near Bristol. In 1897, the Trustees of Christiana Thow’s estate gifted £2,000 to found the Thomas Thow Scholarship at the University in accordance with the sisters’ wishes.
Sources: Biographical Register – Thomas Thow; UYUC602-3