Life
He was born in Leith on 9 February 1808, probably the son of Agnes Symington (d.1846) and Robert Grieve (1776-1855), a ship-chandler on The Shore. He studied law at the University of Edinburgh.
He spent much of his working life in his role as a Collector for HM Customs. This was first based at Banff in Scotland before being relocated to the south coast of England, being based at both Grimsby and Dover.[2]
He was a member of a local geological society in Banff and presented it with a rare sample of graptolite in 1853. Here he was both a colleague and friend of Charles William Peach, father to Ben Peach.[3]
In 1872 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh his proposer being James McBain.[4] He is known to have made several studies in the quarry within Arthur’s Seat south-east of the city.[5]
At the time of his Presidency of the RPSE he was living at 2 Keir Street, off Lauriston Place.[6]
He died in Edinburgh on 25 June 1889. He is buried in the Grange Cemetery.[7][8] He is also memorialised on his parents' grave in the western section of Greyfriars Kirkyard.