---
title: "John George Bartholomew (1860-1920)"
description: John George Bartholomew played a key part in establishing the Bartholomew dynasty of Edinburgh mapmakers as a pioneering global force in cartography.  He was also a founder of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, which has shared many Directors with ScotWays…
url: "https://scotways.com/ken/john-george-bartholomew/"
updated: "2025-06-05"
category: History / Important People of Scottish Access
tags:
  - Scotways175
---

# John George Bartholomew (1860-1920)

John George Bartholomew played a key part in establishing the Bartholomew dynasty of Edinburgh mapmakers as a pioneering global force in cartography.  He was also a founder of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, which has shared many Directors with ScotWays over the years.

He was also a key member of the group of young Edinburgh professional men who [revived the Rights of Way Society in the 1880s and 1890s](https://scotways.com/ken/scottish-rights-of-way-and-recreation-society-limited/), particularly in pursuing the bold legal case to defend the [Jock’s Road](https://scotways.com/heritage-path/?id=133) right of way in Glen Doll, but also in supporting [James Bryce](https://scotways.com/ken/james-bryce/) in his Parliamentary campaign for a right of free access to mountains and moorlands, and in lobbying for the Local Government (Scotland) Act of 1894 which placed a duty on local councils to assert and maintain rights of way.

The Society’s long-sustained links to the Bartholomew family have hugely benefited our cartography in guides and path maps since then.