John Marjoribanks, MA (Cantab), FCCA (Retd)
Heritage Officer
John joined the Society soon after it was re-established in 2002. He began working enthusiastically on the search for the next Logan Chief of Name and Arms, or Logan of that Ilk. It is through John’s tireless efforts that much has been uncovered surrounding the life and family of the last Logan Chief, Hugh Logan, who died in 1802 without leaving an heir. It cannot be overstated the immensity of this challenge given the vast amount of years John’s search has had to cover – combing through ancient archives and establishing a definitive paper trail. John has worked with a succession of professional genealogists tracing the separate lines of the Logans of that Ilk, successfully whittling down the possible candidates as the years have passed.
John was born in Cyprus during World War II to Scottish parents. He was raised in Khartoum, Sudan, to the age of seven, when he went home to Scotland for his education. After school in St Andrews and Edinburgh, he attended St John's College, Cambridge, graduating in 1965. In that year John's father successfully petitioned the Lord Lyon King of Arms to matriculate arms as William Marjoribanks of that Ilk, Chief of Name and Arms of Marjoribanks. Being a younger son, John matriculated arms as a cadet of Marjoribanks.
After eight years working in Scotland, John returned to Africa, working first in Zambiathen in Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and eventually moving to India, before returning to London in 1998. While in India John was Chairman of the New Delhi Caledonian Society. In 1996, John spoke at a conference in Kerala, southern India, on William Logan: His Relevance to Modern Malabar, discussing the life and work of his great-grandfather, Collector of Malabar in the 1870s.
Returning to Scotland in 2000, John settled in Berwickshire, near the birthplace of his great-grandfather, William Logan. He took on a number of public-sector roles but left time for more interesting things. John chaired his local Community Council, for whom he designed a coat of arms and successfully petitioned Lord Lyon to grant them to the Council. John then organized an exhibition and pageant to mark the 250th Anniversary of his village, Gavinton, publishing a history of the village.
John also found time to join a project to transcribe original documents relating to the Battle of Flodden; chair the Whiteadder Burns Club; serve as President of the Duns Curling Club and of the Rotary Club of Duns. He is not one to sit idle.
In 2019, John moved with his wife to Axminister in Devon, southern England, where he continues to work on the search for the next Logan Chief.