Andrew Carnegie was born in Dunfermline, Fife in 1835, the son of a weaver. At the age of 12 he travelled with his family to the United States, the land of freedom and promise. By the time he was 24 Carnegie had become a superintendent Pennsylvania Railroad and then invested in oil and steel. When he sold out to the US Steel Corporation in 1901, for $250 million, he was one of the richest men in the world. He had married a young American woman, Louise Whitfield, and brought her to Scotland for their honeymoon. They visited Scotland regularly over the next ten years. In 1897 Louise gave birth to their first and only child. Carnegie was overjoyed at becoming a father and made an immediate decision. "Margaret must have a Scottish home!" Carnegie was not at all convinced about Skibo when it was suggested as it was in a dilapidated state, but driving up the beech-lined avenue Carnegie was captivated. Skibo would be his Faery Glen, his own place of peace. The purchase price was