Sir William Burrell

Ship-owner and art collector, born in Glasgow, W Scotland, UK. He entered his father's business at the age of 15, and gradually accumulated a collection of 8000 works of art from all over the world, which he gave in 1944 to the city of Glasgow, with provision for a gallery. The Burrell Collection was finally opened to the public in 1983.

Sir William Burrell (July 9, 1861 - March 29, 1958) was a Glaswegian shipping merchant and philanthropist.

Burrell joined this business in 1875, at the age of 14, and took over the firm when his father died. Burrell and his brothers were successful in business by ordering ships during economic downturns, and using these modern vessels to full capacity when the economy recovered. This allowed Burrell to spend his time collecting antiques, and he managed this by his eye for a bargain.

In 1944 Burrell donated his collection to the city of Glasgow, with £250,000 to house it. A custom-build museum, the Burrell Collection, was finally opened in 1983 - even this is large enough to display only a portion of Burrell's collection.

William Burrell died at Hutton Castle in the Scottish Borders on 29 March 1958, at the age of 96.