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Of course they were all great minds and I knew one fairly well, von Braun. But there were many great Scots also, though their names may not be as familiar, they are nevertheless worthy of being classified “Great minds,” and others of sizeable influence on American lives.Among them,
Witherspoon - John (1723-1794) - Scottish minister urged the signing of the American Declaration of Independence.
Wilson - Alexander (1766-1813) - He published nine volumes of his illustrations of North American birds.
Watt - James (1736-1819) - His development of the steam engine was the springboard for the Industrial Revolution.
United States First Governors - Nine of the first governors of the 13 states were of Scottish ancestry.

Watson-Watt - Sir Robert (1892-1973) - Developed radar which helped to win the Battle of Britain in 1940.
Wallace - Sir William (?- 1305) - The freedom fighter who inspired a nation to fight back.
Transport and the Scots - Scots inventors from railways to steamboats and two-stroke engines.
Stevenson - Robert Louis (1850-1894) - Author of such classics as “Treasure Island” and “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde”.
Smith - Adam (1723-1790) - Wrote the first “modern” book on economics, advocating free trade to increase wealth.
Simpson - Sir James Y (1811-1870) - Pioneer of the medical use of chloroform.
Scott - Sir Walter (1771-1832) - Author of novels such as “Ivanhoe” who also “invented” modern tartans.
Pinkerton - Allan (1819-1884) - Founded the Pinkerton Detective Agency in Chicago in 1850.
Murdoch - William (1754-1839) - Inventor who is best known for his manufacture of gas lighting.
Muir - John (1834-1914) - One of the founders of United States Conservation.

Miller - Hugh (1802-1856) - A pioneer of the science of geology.
Maxwell - James Clerk (1831-1879) - Created a profound change in the conception of reality in physics.
Maclean - Alistair (1922-1987) - Author of books such as “HMS Ulysses” and “The Guns of Navaronne”.
Macintosh - Charles (1766-1843) - His invention of waterproof clothing added his name to the English dictionary.
McAdam - John Loudon (1756-1836) - Improved a tar-based road surface which became known as “tarmac”.
Livingstone - Dr David (1813-1873) - African missionary and explorer.
Liddell - Eric Henry (1902-1945) - A great athlete, he became the subject of the film “Chariots of Fire”.
Lister - Lord Joseph (1827-1912) - Pioneer of modern surgery and antiseptics.
Liston - Robert (1794-1847) - A brilliant surgeon before the days of anaesthetics.
Kidd - Captain William (1645-1701) - The treasure of this famous pirate, hanged in 1701, has never been found.
Jones - John Paul (1747-1792) - America’s first naval hero.
Fleming - Sir Alexander (1881-1955) - Won the Nobel prize as discoverer of penicillin.
Dunlop - John Boyd (1840-1921) - Established the Dunlop Rubber Company.
Dewar - Sir James (1842-1923) - Inventor of the vacuum flask.
Douglas - David (1799-1834) - Botanist and explorer after whom the Douglas fir is named.
Doyle - Sir Arthur Conan (1859-1930) - Based his famous detective Sherlock Holmes on a forensic scientist.
Connery - Sir Sean (1930- ) - Regarded by some as the greatest president Scotland never had.
Carnegie - Andrew (1835-1919) - The railway, iron and steel tycoon who gave all his wealth away.
Bell - Alexander Graham (1847-1922) - Inventor of the telephone and involved in genetics and phonetics.
Brewster - Sir David (1781-1868) - Invented the kaleidoscope and the lenticular stereoscope.
Words invented by:
Decibel - Alexander Graham Bell
Kelvin - Lord Kelvin
Watt - James Watt
Graham’s Law - Thomas Graham
Maxwell’s Rule - James Clerk Maxwell
Brownian Movement - Robert Brown
James Watt also invented the formula to measure “horsepower” - and exaggerated it by 50% to encourage sales of his steam engine!
And JAMES MCHENRY, for whom Fort McHenry was named who was Scot/Irish and Washington’ and Adams Secretary of War.