John Sturgeon Mackay
John Sturgeon Mackay (1843–1914) was a Scottish mathematician and author. He was born on 22 October 1843 at Auchencairn near Kirkcudbright, the son of John Mackay and Jessie Sturgeon. The family moved to Perth, where he attended Perth Academy. He entered St Andrews University in 1859 and earned an MA in 1863. He began teaching mathematics at Perth Academy that year, then moved to Edinburgh Academy in 1866 to teach.
In 1882 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh; his proposers were Peter Guthrie Tait, George Chrystal, Fleeming Jenkin and Alexander Dickson. St Andrews University awarded him an honorary LLD in 1884. In 1883 he co-founded the Edinburgh Mathematical Society and served as its first president. He retired in 1904.
He died on 26 March 1914 in Edinburgh. He never married and had no children. He is buried in Wellshill Cemetery in Perth beside his parents.
In 1923 his brother Robert Mackay donated 52 mathematical books that had belonged to John to St Andrews University; these are now known as the Mackay Collection.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 10:43 (CET).