Alexander Dick Grimond (1824-1903)
Alexander Dick Grimond (1824-1903) of Blairgowrie was the son of David Grimond, a flax spinner, and Isabella Robertson. He and his brother, Joseph, became early pioneers in the jute carpet trade. The brothers owned a firm in Calcutta which purchased, selected and shipped jute to Dundee, and at one point, their Bowbridgeworks and Maxwelltown factories in Dundee employed up to 3,000 people. They maintained offices in Manchester, London and New York to sell their goods. Grimond also served as director for the Texas Land and Cattle Company. He never married. Besides being ‘one of the fathers of the jute trade’, he was also recognised as generous philanthropist. In 1892, he became a lifetime governor of University College Dundee after donating £50 to the institution. A couple years thereafter, he gave a £250 subscription to support the construction of University Hall for Women Students at St Andrews. Upon his death, he bequeathed approximately one-third of his estate to other charitable and religious institutions.
Source: UY3778/1/29a; McManus168 Project; ‘Death of Dundee Jute Prince’, Dundee Courier, 30 January 1903.