John Lapraik

Gerard Lee McKeever (University of Stirling)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Tweet Report an Error

John Lapraik was born in 1727 at Laigh Dalquhram (now Dalfram) in the parish of Muirkirk, Ayrshire. He published a single volume of poetry in 1788, titled Poems, on Several Occasions. The work had minimal success and he is remembered principally for his connection to Robert Burns, who was a friend and professed admirer of Lapraik’s verse. Lapraik began life as a freehold farmer, inheriting the lands of Upper and Nether Dalfram, along with the tenancy of nearby Muirsmill. Yet the failure of the Ayr Bank during the credit crisis of 1772 effectively ruined him, and after a period of struggling to repay his dues, in 1785 he was sent to prison in Ayr for debt. Later in life, Lapraik ran the post office in Muirkirk, where he died on t…

1543 words

Citation: McKeever, Gerard Lee. "John Lapraik". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 September 2016 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13765, accessed 29 March 2024.]

13765 John Lapraik 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.