Archibald Barr

Who was Archibald Barr?

Archibald Barr FRS FRSE was a Scottish scientific engineer, inventor and businessman. He was a co-founder of Barr & Stroud, and invented the Barr & Stroud Rangefinder.

The third son of a yarn merchant, Barr was educated at Paisley Grammar School and the University of Glasgow.

Barr first worked as assistant to James Thomson, the Regius Professor of Civil Engineering and Mechanics at Glasgow, a post Barr was to attain himself later in his career. He was subsequently appointed to the chair of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the Yorkshire College.

Barr was a motoring enthusiast and as a member of the Scottish Automobile Club, he participated as an organiser of Scotland’s first motor car reliability trials in 1901. He also helped to form the Scottish Aeronautical Club in 1909, becoming its president, and was a promoter of Scotland’s first aviation meeting, held at Lanark in 1910. He served as President of the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland in 1910-11. Barr was also a governor of the Royal Scottish National Institution for the care of those with learning difficulties.