HENDERSON, John (1807-1884), of Leazes House, Durham

Remembered as being ‘from his school days until the close of a long and honourable life, a consistent and earnest Liberal’, Henderson was born at Durham, the eldest son of Gilbert Henderson, who had founded the family carpet manufacturing business in 1814.1Northern Echo, 8 Apr. 1884. Henderson left school to join Messrs. Henderson and Company, and following the death of his father, managed the company single-handedly until his younger brother William undertook a portion of the management. By the 1850s, the company was the third largest carpet supplier in the country, and also specialised in weaving carpets for the international market.2The Durham thirteen: biographical sketches of the members of parliament returned for the city, boroughs, and county of Durham (1874), 76-85. As a large shareholder in the Northumberland and Durham District Banking Company, Henderson was one of three entrusted with the task of winding up its affairs when it crashed in 1857, and in 1864 he was one of the founders of the Consett iron works, of which he later became chairman.3M. Phillips, A history of banks, bankers and banking in Northumberland, Durham and North Yorkshire (1894), 334; Description of the works: Consett Iron Company (1893), 10. He was also a partner in Eldon colliery, county Durham, and Sharlston colliery in Yorkshire.4Northern Echo, 8 Apr. 1884. Outside his business interests, Henderson was a keen lover of sport, and was described by a contemporary as ‘the father of the Durham county hunt’.5R. Ord, The Sedgefield country in the seventies and eighties: with the reminiscences of a first whipper-in (1904), 17-27.

As chairman of the Durham Liberal Association, there was little surprise when Henderson came forward at the 1864 by-election, following the death of the sitting Liberal member.6Newcastle Courant, 5 Feb. 1864. Having played a prominent role in ‘every parliamentary contest’ since the Reform Act, he was an extremely popular candidate and was elected without opposition.7Northern Echo, 8 Apr. 1884; Standard, 11 Feb. 1864. In his address, he championed ‘the great principles of neutrality and non-intervention’ and pledged that he would ‘give to Lord Palmerston’s government all the support in my power in carrying out the only policy by which the peace and dignity of our country can be preserved’.8Newcastle Courant, 5 Feb. 1864; Morning Post, 11 Feb. 1864.

Described by one of his colleagues as ‘a safe politician … Liberal to the backbone’, Henderson voted with Palmerston’s second administration on most major issues, including against Disraeli’s motion of censure of government policy in the Danish war, 8 July 1864. As an avowed ‘advocate of a large extension of the franchise’, he divided in minorities for the county franchise bill, 13 Apr. 1864, for the borough franchise bill, 11 May 1864, and the ballot, 21 June 1864.9Morning Post, 11 Feb. 1864. He backed the reform bill of Lord John Russell’s short-lived ministry, 27 Apr. 1866, and voted for church rate abolition, 7 Mar. 1866. During the debates on the Derby ministry’s representation of the people bill, he divided with Gladstone on most major clauses, but voted for John Stuart Mill’s amendment to enfranchise women, 20 May 1867. He also pressed for Darlington to be created a borough, arguing that it was distinguished by its industry and commercial activity, 12 July 1867.

A frequent attender in the Commons, Henderson was described by a contemporary as ‘a man of business, who speaks like a ledger. His speeches are a plain unvarnished account of the facts, rendered luminous by a shrewd and practical common sense’.10The Durham thirteen: biographical sketches of the members of parliament returned for the city, boroughs, and county of Durham (1874), 76-85. His contributions to debate mainly addressed industrial issues, and showed a particular concern for the welfare of the working classes. In his first known intervention, he criticised the non-rating of iron and copper mines for the relief of the poor, 2 Mar. 1866, and thereafter pressed for reform of the rating of mines, 10 Apr. 1867, 8 July 1868. He sat on the select committee on the mines assessment bill, where his assiduous questioning reflected his expertise on the iron and coal industries.11PP 1867 (321), xiii. 128. He also called for legislation on smoke furnaces in factories, stating that ‘it could not be doubted that an atmosphere charged with smoke was prejudicial both to health and property’, and that ‘it would be a great boon to the working classes if they were permitted to see a little daylight’, 9 Mar. 1866. His own manufacturing concerns were evident when he questioned Derby’s ministry on whether builders from parts of the country other than the Thames would be allowed to tender for two new iron gunboats, 1 Mar. 1867, and when he pressed the government on the publication of a royal commission into the probable duration of Britain’s coalfields, 28 Nov. 1867.

Returned at the top of the poll at the 1868 general election, Henderson continued to attend actively, and speak on industrial matters affecting the north-east of England. His return at the 1874 general election, however, was declared void on petition after he was found guilty, along with the other sitting Liberal MP, of bribery by his agent.12Northern Echo, 23 May 1874. Although Henderson declined subsequent invitations to stand again, he remained active in local Liberal politics until declining health compelled him to retire. He subsequently moved to Christchurch, Hampshire in 1881 and died at nearby Bournemouth, having been invalided for some time, in 1884. He left estate valued at £196,568, 7s. 3d.13England and Wales, National Probate Calendar, Index of wills and administration, 1861-1941, 27 May 1884. He was succeeded by his eldest living son, Charles William Chipchase Henderson, who later became chairman of the Consett iron company. 14North-Eastern Daily Gazette, 8 Apr. 1884; The Times, 10 Apr. 1884; Description of the works: Consett Iron Company (1893), 10. His other surviving son, Arthur, carried on the management of Messrs. Henderson and Company until 1903 when it was sold to Messrs. Crossley of Halifax.15P.A.G. Clack, The book of Durham city (1985), 80.