Thomas Nussey

Sir Thomas Willans Nussey, 1st Baronet DL JP (12 October 1868 – 12 October 1947) was an English barrister and Liberal Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Pontefract from 1893 to 1910.

Sir Willans Nussey DL
Member of Parliament for Pontefract
In office 1893–1910
Personal details
Born	12 October 1868 Thorner, West Riding of Yorkshire
Died	12 October 1947 Sutton Howgrave, Bedale
Political party	Liberal Party
Children	1
Parents	Thomas Nussey (Father)
Alma mater	Trinity Hall, Cambridge Malvern College

Family and education

Willans Nussey was the son of Thomas Nussey, a woollen manufacturer of Bramley Grange, Thorner near Leeds in the West Riding of Yorkshire. His sister Hilda (1875-1962) was a VAD nurse during the Great War at Gledhow Hall. The Nussey siblings' relative was "Mrs Agnes Nussey of Potternewton Hall" who corresponded with their cousin Ellen Nussey.[1][2][3][4]

Thomas was educated at Malvern College until Christmas 1882, then attended Leamington College for Boys[5] and Trinity Hall, Cambridge.[6][7] In 1897 he married Edith Daniel the daughter of a medical doctor from Fleetwood in Lancashire. At the time of the marriage the Daniels were living in Scarborough and the wedding took place there.[8] They had one son. Edith Nussey died in 1934 and Sir Willans married again in 1935. His second wife was Edith Maud Cliff OBE from Leeds who was the Commandant of Gledhow Hall Military Hospital during the Great War.[9][10][11]

Career

Nussey went in for the law and in 1893 he was called to the bar at the Inner Temple.[12] However he does not seem to have required an occupation to provide an income. He started to engage in political activity as soon as he came down from university and MPs did not receive salaries until 1911.[13] In the 1830s, Nussey's father had started a woollen manufacturing business with his two brothers, Obadiah – Mayor of Leeds in 1864[14] – and Joseph, and this grew into a large and successful enterprise.[15] It seems likely that Nussey had access to family money to allow him to seek a career in politics.

Politics

Nussey held Liberal political views and was said to have remained faithful to the ideas and policies of William Ewart Gladstone all his life.[6] He first stood for Parliament at the 1892 general election in the Maidstone division of Kent but in June 1893 there was a by-election in the Pontefract constituency in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The election of the sitting Liberal MP for Pontefract, Harold Reckitt at a by-election in February 1893, was declared void following an election petition [16] and Nussey was selected to contest the seat.[17] He won the by-election narrowly [18] but held his seat until the December 1910 general election when he retired from the House of Commons.[6]

Honours and appointments

In 1909, Nussey was created a baronet [12] in the Birthday Honours list.[19] After stepping down from Parliament he in continued public life. He was a Justice of the Peace for the North Riding, chairman of the local bench, chairman of the North Yorkshire Quarter Sessions, chairman of the Appeals Committee and a Deputy Lieutenant of the North Riding.[6]

Death

Nussey died at his home, Sutton Howgrave, Bedale [9] in the North Riding of Yorkshire on 12 October 1947 aged exactly 79 years.[6] Edith, Lady Nussey died in 1962. The heir to the Nussey baronetcy was his son from his first marriage, Thomas Moore Nussey (19 July 1898 – 25 October 1971).

Papers

A collection of letters sent by Nussey's to the Liberal prime minister, Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, has been deposited in the British Library manuscript collection.[20]

References

1. "Miss Hilda Nussey - Hospital Gledhow Hall". © British Red Cross. 2018. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
2. "Special Constabulary Medal named to Sir Thomas Nussey, 1st Baronet - rare!". WorthPoint Corporation. 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020. Thomas had two sisters Ethel Beatrice Nussey (1873-1933) and Hilda Mary Nussey (1875-1962). His father was a woollen manufacturer who had started a woollen manufacturing business with his two brothers, Obadiah and Joseph...
3. Whitehead, B. (1993). Charlotte Brontë and Her 'dearest Nell': The Story of a Friendship. Smith Settle. p. 246. ISBN 9781858250113. Ellen had troubles both of health and money ....."You and my many friends are very good at making life sweet and interesting", she told Mrs Agnes Nussey of Potternewton Hall...[Agnes's husband was] Samuel Leathley Nussey, a descendant [great-grandson] of George Nussey of Hunslet, [Samuel] married Agnes Clark, who became very interested in the history of the Nussey family, collected data on them, and corresponded with Ellen...
4. "Potternewton Hall, Potternewton Lane". Leodis. Retrieved 11 April 2020. When living at Potternewton Hall, Samuel L. Nussey regularly entertained both his friends and extended family. His cousin was Ellen Nussey of Birstall, near Leeds. Ellen was the life-long friend of novelist Charlotte Bronte.
5. L S Milward and E C Bullock, The Malvern register, 1865–1904; Malvern, 1964 p. 189
6. Obituary, The Times, 18 October 1947 p. 6
7. "Nussey, Thomas Willans (NSY887TW)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
8. The Times, 11 September 1897 p. 7
9. Who was Who, OUP 2007
10. "Edith Cliff, Commandant of Gledhow Hall Military Hospital". Leodis. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
11. "Miss Edith Maud Cliff O.B.E." The Red Cross. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
12. The Times House of Commons, 1910; Politico’s Publishing, 2004 p. 47
13. House of Commons Information Office Factsheet M5, Members’ Pay, Pensions and Allowances; May 2009 p. 5
14. "Leeds, Yorkshire. An Extensive Group of..." Metropress Ltd, (t/a Auction Technology Group). 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2020. Obadiah Nussey, JP, of Morley House, Headingley served as Mayor of Leeds in 1863/64 and was `father` (ie founder) of the ... Sir Thomas Nussey, a baronet
15. The Times, 13 November 1909 p. 13
16. The Times, 10 June 1893 p. 7
17. The Times, 17 June 1893 p. 10
18. The Times, 27 June 1893 p. 7
19. The Times, 25 June 1909 p. 9
20. "Archival material relating to Thomas Nussey". UK National Archives.