His grandfather Thomas Rowatt (d.1880) was involved with James Young in the Scottish shale oil industry.
[1] His family moved to Scotland in his youth and he was educated at Ewart High School in Newton Stewart.
[2] He served his apprenticeship at Carrick & Ritchie, crane builders, at the Waverley Engineering Works on Easter Road, Edinburgh.
In 1921 he replaced Alexander Gait as Keeper of Technology and in 1934 succeeded Edwin Ward as Director of the Museum.
His proposers were Percy H. Grimshaw, Alexander Stephen, Sir Thomas Hudson Beare and John Brown Clark.