Cockburn Mrs Alison

Cockburn, Mrs. Alison (1713-1795), a Scottish woman of letters, chiefly known as the writer of The Flowers of the Forest (1765). She was the daughter of Robert Rutherford, and in 1731 married an advocate, becoming a widow in 1753. She was a queen of Edinburgh society, and in 1777 foresaw the greatness of Scott, whose mother was her relative. In 1786 she made the acquaintance of Burns.