1058 Thomas Ashton

Constituency  : Hyde  1885-6, Luton  1895-1911

Thomas   won  the  new  seat  of  Hyde.

Thomas  was  an  industrialist  from  Manchester.  His  family  had  been  prominent  cotton  manufacturers  for  decades.He  was  educated  at  Rugby  and  Oxford  then  went  into  the  family  business. He  was  a  Unitarian.

Thomas  was  a  major  contributor  to  the  funds  of  the  Manchester  Liberal  Union.

Thomas  was  defeated  in  1886  and  unsuccessful  in  the  same  constituency  in  1892. He  switched  to  Luton  in  1895.

In  1911  Thomas  was  created  Baron  Ashton. He  was  chairman  of  the  Cotton  exports  Committee  during  World  War  One.

He  died  in  1933  aged  78.