Rev Prof John Hill FRSE LLD (1747-1805) was a Scottish minister and classicist. In 1783 he was one of the joint founders of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
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Life
He was born in St Andrews on 27 April 1747 the son of Rev John Hill (d.1764) by his first marriage. His mother, Elizabeth, died at or soon after his birth. His father remarried and had more children, including John’s half-brother, George Hill. He attended St Andrews Grammar School then St Andrews University where he graduated MA around 1767.
From 1775 until 1793 he was joint Professor of Humanity at St Andrews University. Edinburgh University awarded him an honorary doctorate (LLD) in 1787. He then moved to Edinburgh University as sole Professor of Humanity.
His final years were spent at Brown Square in Edinburgh where he died on 7 December 1805. He is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard against the western wall of the original area, north-west of the Adam mausoleum. The enclosure and monument are no longer present, but stood just south of the tablet to Sir James Hall. His house (just east of Greyfriars) was demolished in the 1860s to make way for Chambers Street.
Publications
Artistic Recognition
He was painted by Sir Henry Raeburn.
Family
He married Anne Macleod. His daughter Elizabeth Hill (d.1869) married James Nairne WS FRSE in 1807. His daughter Mary Hill (d.1857) married Thomas Guthrie Wright FRSE in 1809. He was uncle to Rev George Cook FRSE and Norman Macleod FRSE.