Hugh Ferguson
Hugh Ferguson (1863 – 4 November 1937) was a Unionist politician.
After a career as a soldier, Ferguson became involved in the Orange Order, a Protestant Unionist organisation based in Ireland. Believing that there was a base for his politics in the west of Scotland, he stood for the Motherwell constituency in several Parliamentary elections.
In the 1918 general election, Ferguson won only 10.7% of the vote. However, in the 1922 election, there was no official Unionist candidate, and standing as an "Independent Unionist", Ferguson came a close second with 29.1%. By the 1923 election, he was able to secure his adoption as the official Unionist candidate,[1] and narrowly took the seat. However, he held it for only a year, losing by an equally slim margin.
Ferguson then faded from public view. In 1933, he was convicted of receiving stolen goods, namely iron plates and railway chairs. He died on 4 November 1937.[2]
References
- Michael Stenton and Stephen Lees, Who's Who of British MPs: Volume III, 1919-1945
- ^ although The Times of 8 Dec 1923 lists him as an Independent candidate
- ^ "Members since 1979", House of Commons Library Research Paper 09/31, p. 179.