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Edward Whitley (politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Liverpool". Caricature by Spy published in Vanity Fair in 1880.
Statue in St George's Hall, Liverpool.

Edward Ewart Whitley (1825 – 14 January 1892) was an English solicitor and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1892.

Biography

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Whitley was the son of John Whitley of Liverpool and his wife Isabella Greenall,[1] and a nephew of the Conservative politician Gilbert Greenall.[2] He was educated at Rugby School and admitted a solicitor in 1849. He became a senior partner in the legal firm of Whitley, Maddock, Hampson, & Castle, of Liverpool.[1] He became a member of the Corporation of Liverpool in 1866, and was Mayor of Liverpool in 1868.[3] He became a J. P. for Liverpool.

In 1880 Whitley was elected as one of three Members of Parliament (MPs) for Liverpool and held the seat until the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885. He was then elected MP for Everton,[1] which he held until his death aged 66.[2] He was buried in Alvanley Churchyard, near Helsby in Cheshire.[4]

In 1878 Whitley married Elizabeth Eleanor Walker. His residences were The Grange, Halewood, near Liverpool and 185 Piccadilly.[1]

Whitley is commemorated by Whitley Street in Liverpool,[5] and by a triangular piece of rocky ground in Everton called Whitley Gardens.[6]

There is a statue of Edward Whitley in St George's Hall, Liverpool.

Children

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Edward had five children, including Herbert Whitley and brother William, who moved to Devon with their mother and sister, Mary, following their father's death.[7][8] Eldest son Edward Jr remained in Liverpool pursuing his medical career.

Herbert founded Paignton Zoo,[8][7] and his work continues through his trust - now the Wild Planet Trust but formerly the Whitley Wildlife Conservation Trust - which still run a number of wildlife-focused attractions in the South West.

Edward's youngest son, Charles Whitley, was killed in 1917 during the Battle of Arras whilst serving with the King's Royal Rifle Corps,[9] having been awarded the Military Cross the previous year for conspicuous gallantry.[10][11]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Debretts House of Commons and the Judicial Bench 1886
  2. ^ a b "Obituaries". The Times. 15 January 1892. p. 5. Retrieved 8 September 2012.(subscription required)
  3. ^ Liverpool Mayors Archived 22 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Court News". The Times. 20 January 1892. p. 6. Retrieved 8 September 2012.(subscription required)
  5. ^ "Liverpool street names". Archived from the original on 7 May 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2009.
  6. ^ Townships: Everton, A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3 (1907), pp. 20-22. Date accessed: 22 April 2009
  7. ^ a b Davies, Owain (Autumn 2018). "Hunting through the generations". Hound Tor. No. 1. pp. 44–46. ISSN 2515-9437.
  8. ^ a b "Death of Mrs Whitley". Exeter and Plymouth Gazette. 11 June 1929.
  9. ^ "Captain Charles Whitley". Commonwealth War Graves.
  10. ^ "Whitley, Charles Claude". Flintshire War Memorials.
  11. ^ "War and the Whitleys: Para-medics, Peacocks and Paignton Zoo". World War Zoo.
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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Liverpool
18801885
With: Viscount Sandon to 1882
William Rathbone to 1880
John Ramsay 1880
Samuel Smith from 1882
Lord Claud Hamilton from 1880
Constituency abolished
New constituency Member of Parliament for Liverpool Everton
18851892
Succeeded by