Robert Simson's Memorial

West Kilbride cemetery, which occupies a hill top location, is most well-known for its memorial to Robert Simson, the famous mathematician who was born in West Kilbride in 1867. The memorial which is visible for miles around was designed by F T Pilkington (1865), and is a large octagonal monument with carved Egyptian details, topped with a ball finial. It is impressive.
Robert Simson (1687-1768) was the eldest son of John Simson of Kirktonhall, West Kilbride in Ayrshire, he was intended for the Church, but the bent of his mind was towards mathematics. He was educated at the University of Glasgow and graduated M.A. In 1711, he was appointed by the university to the professorship of mathematics, an office which he retained until 1761.
Simson's contributions to mathematical knowledge took the form of critical editions and commentaries on the works of the ancient geometers in particular Euclid, for many years his work was the standard text on Euclid in the UK.