He was born in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire on 7 January 1894 the son of William Lockhart, nurseryman, and his wife Elizabeth Bogie.
The family moved to Aberdeen in the early 20th century, his father being then employed as an auctioneer in the fruit and vegetable market.
His studies were interrupted by the First World War, where he served as a non-commissioned officer (NCO) with the title of Surgeon Probationer in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve.
His proposers were Edward Maitland Wright, John Stirling Young, William Ogilvy Kermack and James Couper Brash.
[4] A keen horticulturalist, having been trained by his nurseryman father, he created a new black-red rhododendron, "Elizabeth Lockhart", in memory of his mother.