Sir Harry Stephen Meysey-Thompson, 1st Baronet (1809–1874) was Liberal Member of Parliament for Whitby between 1859 and 1865.

Harry Meysey-Thompson
Member of Parliament for Whitby
In office
1859-1865
High Sheriff of Yorkshire
In office
1856-1857
Personal details
Born1809 (1809)
Died1874 (aged 64–65)
SpouseElizabeth Croft
Children5, including Henry, Albert, Charles and Ernest

Biography edit

Thompson was well known as an agriculturalist who helped found the Yorkshire Agricultural Society in 1837, becoming its president in 1862, and was one of the founders of the Royal Agricultural Society in 1838. He served as High Sheriff of Yorkshire for 1856–57 [1] and was also M.P. for Whitby from 1859, when he was elected in a by-election to 1865.[2] In March 1874, shortly before his death, he was created the First Baronet Meysey-Thompson, of Kirby Hall, in the West Riding of the County of York.[3] "Meysey" was Harry Thompson's grandmother's surname.[4]

Thompson served the York and North Midland Railway until its amalgamation with several other railways in 1854, which created the North Eastern Railway (NER). He was then appointed to the first NER Board of Directors, which elected him to be the first Deputy Chairman; and in 1855, he was elected chairman of the board, in succession to James Pulleine. He remained chairman and director until his retirement in February 1874.[5]

He married Elizabeth Anne Croft, and their children included:[6] Henry (1845–1929, who succeeded to his father's title); Elizabeth Lucy, who married Walter Northcote, 2nd Earl of Iddesleigh; Albert (1848–1894); Charles (1849–1881); and Ernest (1859–1944) who became M.P. for Birmingham Handsworth from 1906 to 1922.[7]

References edit

  1. ^ "No. 21844". The London Gazette. 31 January 1856. p. 361.
  2. ^ "Harry Stephen Meysey-Thompson". genealogy.links.org. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  3. ^ "No. 24071". The London Gazette. 3 March 1874. p. 1453.
  4. ^ "Sir Harry Stephen Meysey-Thompson, 1st Bt". www.thepeerage.com. 11 January 2009. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  5. ^ Tomlinson, W.W. (1915). The North Eastern Railway: its Rise and Development. Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Andrew Reid and Company. pp. 770, 771. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  6. ^ "Thompson, Charles (THM868CM)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  7. ^ "Meysey-Thompson, Ernest (MSY877EC)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.

External links edit

Business positions
Preceded by Chairman of the North Eastern Railway
1855–1874
Succeeded by
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Whitby
18591865
Succeeded by
Baronetage of the United Kingdom
New creation Baronet
(of Kirby Hall in the County of York)
March 1874 – May 1874
Succeeded by