Sir John Stirling Ainsworth (30 January 1844 – 24 May 1923) was an English industrialist, banker and

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician.

Family and education

Ainsworth was the son of Thomas Ainsworth of Cleator Moor,

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

. His mother was Mary Laurie,

daughter A daughter is a female offspring; a girl or a woman in relation to her parents. Daughterhood is the state of being someone's daughter. The male counterpart is a son. Analogously the name is used in several areas to show relations between groups ...

of John Stirling, a

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

from Craigie in East Ayrshire. He was educated at University College School, London and at University College, London where he obtained MA and

LL.B Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degrees.''Who was Who'', OUP 2007 In 1879 he married Margaret Catherine daughter of Robert Reid Macredie. They had one son and two daughters. His wife died in 1918. His brother, David Ainsworth (1842–1906) was Liberal

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for West Cumberland from 1880 to 1885 and for Egremont from 1892 to 1895.

Career

Ainsworth had interests in the iron mines and related industries in Cumberland. He was Chairman of the

Cleator and Workington Junction Railway The Cleator & Workington Junction Railway (C&WJR) was located in West Cumberland in Northern England, serving the towns of Cleator Moor and Workington and intermediate villages. It was mainly used for coal, limestone and iron ore traffic for the ...

. He was also involved in banking, being a director of the

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It is th ...

Joint Stock Bank which later merged with Parr's Bank, of which Ainsworth then became director of the Cumberland and Westmoreland local board.

Politics

Ainsworth contested the

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness. In 2023 the ...

constituency at the 1886 general election. He faced the sitting

William Sproston Caine William Sproston Caine (26 March 1842 – 17 March 1903) was a British politician and temperance advocate. Biography Caine was born at Seacombe, Cheshire, and was the eldest surviving son of Nathaniel Caine, a metal merchant from Cheshire, and w ...

who had been elected earlier that year in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

as a Liberal but had switched to the

Liberal Unionist Party The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

. Ainsworth did not fight the general elections of

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

1895 Events January–March * January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank, and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island. * January 12 – The National Trust for Places of Histor ...

but in

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

he was chosen to contest

Argyllshire Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

. He did not win but got the chance to fight the seat again in 1903 at a

when the sitting member, Donald Ninian Nicol, died. At the by-election, which was held on 26 August 1903, Ainsworth won in a straight fight against a Unionist candidate, Mr. C Stewart, by a majority of 1,586 votes. Whilst an MP he voted in favour of the 1908 Women's Enfranchisement Bill. He held the seat until

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

when he stood down from Parliament.

Other public service

Ainsworth was

High Sheriff of Cumberland The sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere or ...

in 1891 and was later Deputy Lieutenant of Cumberland and of

. He commanded the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, the Border Regiment from 1898 to November 1902, and received the honorary rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

as he retired. He also served as a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

in Cumberland. He was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1917. In 1910 he was a member of the Royal Commission on Mines.

Death

Ainsworth died on 24 May 1923, aged 79 years.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stirling, Sir John Ainsworth Stirling, 1st Baronet 1844 births 1923 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom High Sheriffs of Cumberland Scottish Liberal Party MPs Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Highland constituencies Alumni of University College London UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 English bankers English industrialists English justices of the peace People from Cleator Moor Politics of Cumbria People educated at University College School Deputy Lieutenants of Argyllshire Deputy Lieutenants of Cumberland