George Harrison (Lord Provost)
Sir George Harrison (1811 – 23 December 1885) was Lord Provost of Edinburgh and a Liberal politician.
Life
Harrison was a merchant of Edinburgh. He established the firm of Harrisons of Edinburgh in 1863.[1]
He was Lord Provost of the city for 1882 to 1885 and was responsible for the acquisition of Blackford Hill by the Corporation of Edinburgh. He was also particularly interested in education. His contributions to social life included providing the land for the Whitehouse and Grange Bowling club in 1872[2] and acting as president of the Edinburgh Chess Club from 1884 to 1885.[3]
In 1885 Harrison was elected Member of Parliament for Edinburgh South. However he died at the age of 74 within 5 days of the election's closure (18 December), and never took his seat.[4]
He lived his final years at 7 Whitehouse Terrace in the Bruntsfield district.[5]
He is buried in Warriston Cemetery just to the south-east of the vaults.
Recognition
In 1888 the Harrison Arch in Observatory Road was built "to commemorate the work and character of Sir George Harrison". It is a red sandstone triumphal arch.[6] Two streets in Edinburgh — Harrison Road, and Harrison Gardens — were also named after him.[7]
Family
He was married to Jane Archibald (1819-1878). They had several children, including John Harrison FRSE CBE LLD (1847-1922).
References
- ^ https://www.harrisonsofedinburgh.com/collections/harrisons-of-edinburgh
- ^ Whitehouse and Grange Bowling Club History
- ^ Edinburgh Chess Club
- ^ Hansard Millbank Systems - Sir George Harrison
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1884-5
- ^ HISTORIC SCOTLAND - EDINBURGH, CITY OF COUNCIL
- ^ Edinburgh Streets Archived 25 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
External links
  | This article about a provost in Scotland is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
  | This article about a Liberal Member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom representing a Scottish constituency is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |