John Pattison Graham was born into a prosperous Renfrewshire family.
Burntshields Today [2]
As the business expanded, the brothers opened a new market in Porto, in north-west Portugal. In 1820, they famously accepted twenty-seven barrels of port wine in settlement of an outstanding debt. Inspired by the quality of the wine, they redirected their energies towards producing the best port in the Douro Valley. From this pivotal decision, Graham’s Port was established, and the business went from strength to strength. [2][3]
In 1782, William Graham married Margaret Pattison. Together, they had ten children, of whom John Pattison Graham was the eighth. He was born in 1797 at Burntshields House.[4]
Graham Family Tree
Although little is known of his childhood, we do know that John joined the family business and became an East India Merchant. He married his first wife, Eleanor Smith, in 1830, but tragically, she and her son John (born 1831) died only a year later, suggesting childbirth complications. In 1836, while living in Oporto, he married for a second time. His bride was Elizabeth Hatt Noble, then aged twenty-four. The couple had seven children, most of whom were born in Portugal, although one died in early childhood. [1][5]
John Graham Family Tree
By 1851, the family had returned to Scotland and were residing at Makerston Place in Largs. At the time, John, aged fifty-two, was recorded as a general merchant, while Elizabeth was forty-two. Living with them were their four youngest children: Margaret (8), Donald (6), James (5), and Jessie (2). The household employed five live-in servants, and in addition, there was a female visitor, Jessica Smith, aged twenty-five, from Oporto. In 1852, just a year later, John Graham leased Skelmorlie Castle from Archibald William Montgomerie, the 13th Earl of Eglinton. [6][7][8]
With the Earl’s permission, John carried out extensive renovations at Skelmorlie Castle between 1856 and 1864, funding the work himself. The architect William Atkinson Railton was engaged for this project. The original Tower House to the north (1502) and the L-plan range to the south (1636) were preserved; a west wing was added to the Tower House, and a new south wing (highlighted below) replaced an earlier building on the site. Further alterations followed in 1876, when John Honeyman was commissioned to add a wing to the south-east. [7][8][9]
Skelmorlie Castle 2026
Around 1878, during alterations to the offices, an old chapel was discovered on the western side of the southern courtyard. John Boyd, in his 1879 Guide to the District, described the chapel as having an arched gable, an oak ceiling, and joists secured with wooden pins – features that attested to its age. The chapel is believed to have been built by Sir Robert Montgomery, 1st Baronet, who had become increasingly pious in his later years, while undertaking other alterations to the castle. [7][8][9]
By 1861, Skelmorlie Castle was reported to have twenty-nine rooms with one or more windows, suggesting that the alterations were far from complete, as ten years later, there were reportedly sixty-three rooms. At the time, John (62) was still working, lived with Elizabeth (52) and five of their children: John Hatt (23), Margaret (18), Donald (16), James (14), and Jessie (12). The family employed four live-in servants, with an additional butler, gamekeeper, and gardener residing in separate accommodation.[10]
In 1871, John (70) and Elizabeth (60) were joined at the castle by their eldest daughter Emma (34), who was married, along with five grandchildren: William (8), Constance (6), Gertrude (4), Elinor (2), and Ethel (1), most likely Emma’s children. By this time, household staffing had increased significantly. Eleven live-in servants were employed, including two nursemaids, a cook, a lady’s maid, a housemaid, an under housemaid, a laundry maid, a dairy maid, a kitchen maid, a footman, and a groom. [10]
Separate estate accommodation was provided for other staff members: the butler and his family lived at the Gate Lodge; the gardener and his family at the Gardener’s Lodge; the coachman and his family at the Coachman’s House; the gamekeeper and his family at Millburn Cottage; the under-gamekeeper at the Gamekeeper’s House; the groom at the Groom’s Room and an under-gardener and his family at the Gardener’s Lodge. In addition, there would also have been numerous locally employed workers. [10]
By 1881, John was eighty-three, and Elizabeth was seventy-two. Staying with them were their son Donald (36), his wife Gertrude (27), a British subject born in India, and their three children: James (7), Donald (6), and Charles (3). Accompanying them were three servants: a lady’s nurse, a nursery governess, and an under nurse. Also visiting were Frederick Croft (21), an agent in the wine trade and grandson of John and Elizabeth, and Frank Adam (35), an East India merchant. The live-in household staff numbered eight: a footman, a cook, two ladies’ maids, two housemaids, a kitchen maid, and a dairymaid. Additional staff included a butler and his family at the Gate Lodge, along with three gardeners and two gamekeepers occupying various estate properties.[10]
John maintained a lifelong passion for collecting fine art, beginning in his early twenties. His collection included paintings by Gainsborough (The Two Sisters), four major paintings by Turner, including The Wreck Bouy, and Millais’s celebrated Sir Isumbras at the Ford, in which the two peasant children were modelled on the artist’s own children. Other notable works included two paintings by Linnell (The Return of Ulysses and Christ and the Woman of Samaria), a painting by Henri Leys, The Shepherd’s Bible by Edwin Landseer, a painting by Jérôme, Rosa Bonheur’s Highland Raid, and Edward Cooke’s Venice by Moonlight. These works were displayed in the picture gallery, dining room, and drawing room. [9][11]
Works of Art at Skelmorlie Castle
It’s said that one of Mr Graham’s daughters—although it is not known which—was a particularly gifted amateur artist who produced a copy of Venice by Moonlight. According to contemporary accounts, the copy was so accomplished that a former president of the Royal Academy nearly mistook it for the original, while several distinguished art critics were deceived. [9]
Another story recounted by Boyd concerns a painting titled The Distinguished Member of a Humane Society, believed at the time to be an original Landseer. Graham purchased the painting for £2,000, and it attracted considerable attention. Although most experts accepted it as genuine, a visiting Frenchman expressed doubts. The painting was subsequently sent to Landseer himself, who confirmed that it was, in fact, a copy. Further investigation revealed that it had been executed by his sister, who was highly skilled at reproducing his work and had created the picture using one of Landseer’s discarded sketches. Mr Graham received a refund, and the painting was later sold at a much lower price as a copy. [9]
John was generous in sharing his collection, and the paintings could be viewed by appointment. As a result, the Skelmorlie Picture Gallery—despite being a private collection—became more widely known than many public galleries. [8][9]
Life for John and Elizabeth was evidently sociable. They were involved in village activities, and several members of the wider Graham family also lived nearby.[6]
John’s younger brother, Robert, married Susan Schuyler in Devon in 1842, and they had five children. In addition to their country estate at Skipness, near Tarbert in Kintyre, they owned Brooksby in Largs. After Robert died in 1858, Susan inherited the house and continued to live there until her own death in 1895, regularly visited by her children and grandchildren. [4][6][13]
His elder sister, Margaret, married William Thomson, later Lord Kelvin of Largs. Margaret’s poor health necessitated frequent, prolonged stays abroad; nevertheless, the couple did visit Largs. When Margaret died in 1870, it was at Brooksby, the home of her sister‑in‑law. At the time of the 1871 census, William was recorded as a visitor at Brooksby, staying with his sisters‑in‑law, Susan. [4][12][13][14]
In addition to Robert, John’s younger sister Jessie also owned a house in Largs. In 1852, she married Walter Crum, a successful calico printer from Thornliebank, Glasgow, and the couple had nine children. Their principal residence was Rouken Glen, but as keen sailors, they frequently spent their holidays in Largs. By 1865, Walter had either built or acquired Auchinean House at the foot of Nelson Street, on the site now occupied by Nardini’s. Following Walter’s death in 1867, Jessie spent increasing amounts of time in Largs and was living at Auchinean at the time of the 1871 census. When she died in 1876, she was staying nearby at Brooksby, in the home of her sister‑in‑law, Susan. [6][12][13]
After a long and prosperous life, John Pattison Graham died in 1886, at Skelmorlie Castle, aged eighty-nine. His body was taken to Glasgow, where he was buried in the Necropolis.[6]
Sources & References
[1] Ancestors.family search.org – John Pattison
[2] Facebook _ paisleyoorweetoon_burntshields house
[3] https://www.grahams-port.com/heritage.php
[4] Birth, death, and marriage certificates of John Pattison Graham and family
[5] The peerage – John Graham (1797 – 1886)
[6] NA Family History Society, Autumn 2025 journal – The story of three siblings by Fiona Williamson
[7] 1851 census – Largs
[8] Skelmorlie – The Story of the Parish by Walter Smart.
[9] An 1879 Guide to Wemyss Bay, Skelmorlie, Inverkip and Largs by Rev John Boyd, M.A.
[10] 1861, 1871 and 1881 censuses – Skelmorlie
[11] Various Internet websites used to identify the paintings, including Wikipedia, The British Museum, The Tate, etc.
[12] Wikipedia – Lord Kelvin and Walter Crum
[13] The History of Scotland – Baron Kelvin of Largs
[14] Valuation Rolls Largs – 1855, 1865, 1875, 1885.