John Veitch

John Veitch (24 October 1829 – 3 September 1894) was a Scottish philosopher, poet, and historian. Born in Peebles, he was the only son of James Veitch, a Peninsular War veteran, and Nancy Ritchie. Veitch was educated at the University of Edinburgh. He served as an assistant lecturer to Sir William Hamilton and Alexander Campbell Fraser from 1856 to 1860. In 1860, he was appointed to the chair of logic, metaphysics, and rhetoric at the University of St Andrews, and in 1864, he moved to the corresponding chair at the University of Glasgow. In St. Andrews, he resided at 8 Playfair Terrace. In Glasgow, Veitch lectured to working men and women and offered courses for the Glasgow Association for the Higher Education of Women between 1877 and 1883. He founded the Scottish Mountaineering Club in 1892. Veitch was critical of the environmental damage caused by industrialization and advocated for the preservation of old buildings. Philosophically, he was an intuitionist and critical of idealist arguments. He is best known for his contributions to the study of the literature and antiquities of the Scottish Borders. A memoir was written by his niece, Mary R. L. Bryce, in 1896.