Robert Duncan Milne was born on June 7, 1844, at Carslogie House in Cupar, Fife. He was the son of Reverend George Gordon Milne, the town's Episcopalian minister. In the Michaelmas term 1858, he received a bursary to attend Glenalmond College. Milne had a successful academic career at Glenalmond, earning both the Skinner Scholarship and the Buccleuch Gold Medal for Classics. In his third year, he was elected Captain of Coll.

After leaving Glenalmond, Milne attended the University of Oxford to study Classics. There, he encountered evolutionary thought that challenged the theological worldview of his upbringing. Milne's stories often incorporate themes from classical mythology, folklore, and Scottish gothic fiction into a scientific context. He speculated about electromagnetic forces and imagined technologies that could overcome distances in space and time. In 1881, he wrote about time travel as a cinematic experience, predating H.G. Wells.

After graduating from Oxford, he emigrated to California in 1868 and became a pioneer of science fiction following many adventurous experiences in the American West. He is thought to be the world's first full-time science fiction writer. Additionally, he assisted in promoting the writings of his friend Robert Louis Stevenson, including "Treasure Island."

Milne was a talented scholar of Classics who published over sixty science fiction stories, some of which were multi-part or novella-length. These works primarily appeared in the Argonaut and the San Francisco Examiner periodicals between 1879 and 1899. His contributions to early science fiction surpassed those of his Scottish contemporaries, Robert Louis Stevenson and Arthur Conan Doyle. Milne's writing has often been compared to that of Jules Verne and Edgar Allan Poe, yet it faded into obscurity after his tragic death, caused by one of San Francisco's new electric cable cars just before the dawn of the new century.

On the 23 of January 2025, Bloomsbury Academic published a lost piece of Scottish and transatlantic literary history, recovered as part of an ongoing project based at the University of Dundee: The Essential Robert Duncan Milne: Stories by the Lost Pioneer of Science Fiction: Robert Duncan Milne: Bloomsbury Academic

This collection, co-edited by Dr Keith Williams, Reader in English at the University of Dundee, and Ari Brin, a graduate of the Science Fiction program based in California, showcases the works of Milne. This critical edition, the first in 126 years, represents the most comprehensive compilation of Milne's writings ever published.

As a result of a research and public engagement project led by Dr Williams to revive the 'lost' science fiction works of Milne, Fife Council has named a new affordable and sustainable housing development on Carslogie Road in Cupar ‘Robert Duncan Milne Court’. This marks the first time his name has been commemorated in his hometown. The Court was officially opened on Saturday, December 16, 2023. The site features a nine-foot futuristic sculpture called ‘The GeoHorse’, which has a hot air balloon motif on its back to honour the visionary sci-fi writer who grew up at Carslogie House.

Robert Duncan Milne is not the only OG who has written remarkable stories, but his contributions to the world of science fiction have left a lasting impact throughout its history. Glenalmond is thrilled to have Milne as one of our alumni who has achieved extraordinary things, and we are excited to feature and celebrate him with our OGs around the globe through Floreat.                                               

Grace Margaret

Robert Duncan Milne