Jack Nelson Ironside, Loved Scottish Heritage

They don't come more Scottish than Jack Nelson Ironside, a sharp-faced, ramrod-straight bagpiper rarely seen without a glint in his blue eyes and a tartan tie over his shirt.

He was a familiar sight for 30 years at his Scottish Shopper store in Burien and with the Seattle Pipe Band, of which he was pipe major.

He also had the rare honor of being dubbed a Member of the British Empire. The title recognized Mr. Ironside's "service to the Scottish community in the Northwest."

Yet Mr. Ironside grew up on a farm in Burien and didn't see Scotland until he was grown.

"It was his family heritage," said his son. "My grandparents were Scottish, and my grandfather was in the Boer War (1899-1902). . . . He just had such a love for the country."

Mr. Ironside died of a stroke Sunday (Aug. 2). He was 83.

"He loved people, he loved the bagpipe, and he loved his Scottish heritage," said his companion of 13 years, Mary Spadafora.

Born in Vancouver, B.C., to Scottish immigrants, Mr. Ironside graduated from Highline High School in Burien.

At age 16 he bought a few acres of his own on First Avenue South. The farmer who sold it said, "If you look after it now, it will look after you in your old age."

It became Mr. Ironside's home as well as the site of the Scottish Shopper. (In 1990 he moved the store to Southwest 152nd Street.)

As a young man he also tagged along with the Seattle Pipe Band to parades and other outings.

The band, founded by his father, was the model for Mr. Ironside's Seattle Pipe Band Juniors and Seattle Scottish Boys' Pipe Band. The latter in the 1960s won the world championship in their group in Scotland.

Before opening the Scottish Shopper store, Mr. Ironside worked in construction. He also was a founder of the Highland Games Association, and a member of the Caledonian and St. Andrew's Society.

The store is a popular destination for seekers of Scottish trinkets and regalia. He sold the shop in 1994, but the Scot's legacy continues. Mr. Ironside's son Jack Jr. served as pipe major of the Seattle Pipe Band.

And his son Angus Ironside of Burien, at his father's request, is in Glasgow, Scotland, preparing to play in the world competitions with the Prince Charles Pipe Band of California.

Other survivors include Mr. Ironside's sisters Nellie Bend of Vancouver, B.C., Annabelle Lee of Surrey, B.C., and Francis Sommerville of Vernon, B.C.; three grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter. Mr. Ironside's wife, Daisy, died in 1975.

Services are scheduled for 1 p.m. today at Bonney Watson-Washington Memorial Park, 16445 Pacific Highway S., SeaTac.

Remembrances may go to the Medic One Foundation, c/o Harborview Medical Center, Box 359748, 325 Ninth Ave., Seattle, WA 98104.