581 Matthew Thompson

Constituency  : Bradford 1867-8

Matthew  took  the  second  Bradford  seat  away  from  the  Tories  after  the  death  of  the  incumbent. He  stood  as  a  "liberal conservative".

Matthew  was  from  Bradford  and  went  to  Cambridge. He  became  a  barrister  and  practised  until  1857  when  he  returned  to  Bradford  to  take  control  of  his  father-in-law's  brewery. He  was  mayor  within  five  years  of  returning. In  1865  he  became  a  director  of the  Midland  Railway.

Matthew  saw  himself  as  a  stopgap  candidate  and  did  not  stand  for  re-election  in  1868. However  he  did  stand  when  the   winner  Henry  Ripley, a  fellow  moderate,  was  unseated  in  1869  but  was  unsuccessful.

Matthew  was  mayor  again  from  1871-2. In  1879  he  became  chairman  of  the  Midland . He  also  became  chairman  of  the  Forth  Bridge  company  and  saw  the  project  through  to  completion  in  1890. He  received  a  baronetcy  in  recognition  of  his  efforts.

That  year  he  resigned  the  chairmanship  due  to  ill  health  and  died  the  following  year  aged  71.