Shipping magnate and politician. Born in Greenock, Currie formed the Castle shipping line (1862) which operated between Britain, India and South Africa. He later took charge of the Union-Castle Line following the amalgamation with Arthur Anderson's (1792 - 1868) rival Union Line in 1900. His knowledge of South Africa led Currie to be appointed by the British government to resolve boundary disputes with the Boers. Living in Garth House (Glen Lyon), he served as Member of Parliament for Perthshire between 1880 and 1900 and was knighted in 1881. Currie paid for a major restoration of Dunkeld Cathedral in 1908, in gratitude to the Minister's daughter, who had nursed him through a serious illness. He was also served as a Vice-President of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society in its early years.
He died in Devon (England).
Use the tabs on the right of this page to see other parts of this entry
If you have found this information useful please consider making
a donation to help maintain and improve this resource. More info...