John Davidson, 1857-1909

John Davidson was born in Barrhead, Renfrewshire on 11 April 1857, the son of Rev. Alexander Davidson, a minister of the Evangelical Union. From 1879 - 1889 he taught, initially as a pupil teacher, at various schools in Greenock, Glasgow, Paisley and Perthshire, but in 1890 moved to London, where he became well established as a poet and playwright. He had already begun writing reviews and articles in the Glasgow Herald and the Speaker before his poetry began to attract attention, and from the late 1880s until his death in 1909, published many works, including Bruce: a Chronicle Play (1886); Smith: a Tragic Farce (1888); The Great Men, In a Music Hall and other poems (1891); The Triumph of Mamon (1907); and Mamon and his Message (1908). For further details see Who Was Who 1897 - 1916, p 183.