William MacLean (d 1893) was a cotton spinner and councillor.
MacLean was taken into the family cotton firm of MacLean & Brodie at an early age. The family estate of Plantation had brought prosperity when parts of it were bought by the Clyde Navigation Trust and other developers. The firm's cotton mill at Eaglesham was one of the few mills to keep going during the cotton famine caused by the American Civil War.
As a councillor, Bailie MacLean made his name as a strict Licensing Justice, said to be one of the few who was immune to bribery. He was also an author and published two plays and a volume of poems.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 920.04 BAI
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
authors, Clyde Navigation Trust, cotton manufacturers, cotton mills, councillors, drama, licensing, MacLean & Brodie, poetry