Macgregor , John , 1825-1892 , canoeist

As an infant, MacGregor was saved from the Indiaman, KENT, which caught fire in the Bay of Biscay in 1825. He was well known as Rob Roy MacGregor because of his pioneering zeal while travelling in his canoe, the Rob Roy. This was first launched in 1865 and he navigated a network of rivers, canals and lakes, including the Rhine, Danube and Seine and Lakes Constance, Zurich and Lucerne. His most demanding voyage was in 1868 when he went through the Suez Canal down to the Red Sea and from thence to Palestine, navigating the Jordan and Lake Gennesareth. He published ' A Thousand Miles in the Rob Roy Canoe' (London, 1866), 'A voyage alone in the Yawl Rob Roy' (London, 1867), 'The Rob Roy on the Baltic' (London, 1867) and 'The Rob Roy on the Jordan Red Sea and Gennesareth' (London, 1869). See also Edwin Hodder, 'John MacGregor ('Rob Roy')' (London, 1894).