Gilbert Lang 
Biography of Gilbert Lang
Gilbert Lang was born on 15th September 1813 at St. Croix in what was then the Danish West Indies and now belongs to the United States. He was the son of Andrew Lang and his wife Ellison Barnett Gray and the grandson of Rev Gilbert Lang of Largs. His father, Andrew, later Sir Andrew, was the owner of a large plantation, Eliza’s Retreat, worked by enslaved people. He was also the owner of an observatory on the island and a distinguished amateur astronomer.
Gilbert came to Glasgow to study Medicine and was enrolled in the classes of Anatomy and Chemistry in 1830. He enrolled in the same two classes for the next two sessions and did not graduate. It seems that he may have forsaken his medical studies.
A Gilbert Lang, born in the West Indies, is recorded as living in Glasgow in the census of 1851, aged 37 but is described as a mechanical draughtsman, married to Jean McLiver (in 1835). Other genealogical evidence lends credence to this being the same man.
Eliza’s Retreat continued in the possession of Andrew Lang, who died, aged 90, in May 1870. Slavery ended in St Croix in 1848.
Sources
Other Online Resources
Archival Materials
- University of Glasgow Archives, Jeffray’s Registrations
Summary
Gilbert Lang
Born 15 September 1813.
GU Degree:
University Link: Student
Occupation categories: mechanical draughtsman
English snippet: Medical Student at the University of Glasgow, 1830.Record last updated: 19th Jul 2022
Country Associations
University Connections
University Roles
- Student