Alpheus Cleophas Morton
Encyclopedia
Sir Alpheus Cleophas Morton (1840 – 26 April 1923) was a British architect
and surveyor, and a Liberal Party
politician. He was active in local government in London from the 1880s until his death, and sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1889 and 1918.
in London. By 1885 he was living in Clapham
, and was a member of the Wandsworth District Board of Works and president of the Clapham, Stockwell, and South Lambeth Water Consumers' Defence Association.
He was a member of the City of London Corporation from 1882 until his death, for the ward of Farringdon Without
. The park at Finsbury Circus
was known as "Morton's Park" in Corporation circles, because it was mainly due to his work that the gardens had been opened to the public after being compulsorily purchased
by the Corporation through powers in the City of London (Various Powers) Act 1900. Morton was one of those who gave evidence in support of the proposal to the House of Commons Select Committee
which scrutinised the Bill in March 1900. The Act received Royal Assent
in July 1900, and in August of each year Morton made an annual gift to the Lord Mayor of London
of the first crop of mulberries
from the park's gardens.
He was later a member of the City and Guilds of London Institute
, a member of the Commission of Lieutenancy of the City of London
, a governor of St Bartholomew's Hospital
, and chairman of the Metropolitan Paving Committee.
In January 1918 he was appointed as a trustee of the Crystal Palace
, as a representative of the City of London Corporation.
at the 1885 general election
, when he when he contested Hythe
, and was unsuccessful again in Christchurch
at the 1886 election
. He won a seat three years later, when he was elected at a by-election in October 1889 as the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Peterborough
, after the death of the Liberal Unionist
MP John Wentworth-FitzWilliam
, becoming the 81st new MP since since the general election in 1886. His victory was unexpected, and when the result was declared he said that he hoped his victory would be seen as a gesture of conciliation Ireland. He was re-elected in 1892
, and raised in Parliament the issue of the appointment of Justices of the Peace
(magistrates) in April 1893. In November that year, 280 Gladstonian
MPs met the Lord Chancellor
, Lord Herschell
, in the House of Lords
to discuss the system. Morton led the respose to the Lord Chancellor's explanation and defence of the existing system of appointment, and denounced the reliance on advice from Lord Lieutenant
s who were entirely dependant on what Morton called "class cliques". He was also a member of a Select Committee
set up to examine the accommodation provided for members and officials of the House of Commons. Great Western Railway
At the 1895 general election
, Morton was defeated in Peterborough by the Liberal Unionist Robert Purvis
. He continued to "nurse" the constituency in the hope of a return at the next election, but in May 1900 the Peterborough Liberal Association rejected a motion to adopt him as their candidate, choosing instead Halley Stewart
, the former MP for Spalding
.
He contested Bath
at the general election in October 1900
, supported by a campaigning visit from former Liberal leader Sir William Vernon Harcourt
.
However, the city's two seats were won by a Conservative Party
and a Liberal Unionist, and Morton was the last-placed of the four candidates. After eleven years out of the Commons, he was returned at the 1906 general election
as MP for the Scottish county of Sutherland
, defeating the sitting Liberal Unionist MP Frederick Leveson-Gower. He was re-elected for Sutherland in both the January and December 1910 elections, and held the seat until the constituency was abolished at the 1918 general election
.
In July 1910 he abstained on the Second Reading vote on the Parliamentary Franchise (Women) Bill, but voted in favour of Bill being referred to a Committee of the Whole House
.
He was knighted on 6 February 1918, at a ceremony in Buckingham Palace
where the new knights (who included the architect Edwin Lutyens
) were introduced to King George V
by the Home Secretary
Sir George Cave
.
Morton died on 26 April 1923, aged about 83. A memorial service for him was held on 2 May in the church of St Dunstan-in-the-West
in Fleet Street
, where he had been a churchwarden
, and had led the opposition 1919 to a proposal by the Bishop of London
's Commission on the City Churches to demolish St Dunstans and 18 other churches.
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
and surveyor, and a Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
politician. He was active in local government in London from the 1880s until his death, and sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1889 and 1918.
Career
Morton was the son of Francis Morton, and was educated privately in Canada. He became an architect and surveyor, based in Chancery LaneChancery Lane
Chancery Lane is the street which has been the western boundary of the City of London since 1994 having previously been divided between Westminster and Camden...
in London. By 1885 he was living in Clapham
Clapham
Clapham is a district in south London, England, within the London Borough of Lambeth.Clapham covers the postcodes of SW4 and parts of SW9, SW8 and SW12. Clapham Common is shared with the London Borough of Wandsworth, although Lambeth has responsibility for running the common as a whole. According...
, and was a member of the Wandsworth District Board of Works and president of the Clapham, Stockwell, and South Lambeth Water Consumers' Defence Association.
He was a member of the City of London Corporation from 1882 until his death, for the ward of Farringdon Without
Farringdon Without
Farringdon Without is a Ward in the City of London, England. The Ward covers the western fringes of the City, including the Middle Temple, Inner Temple, Smithfield Market and St Bartholomew's Hospital, as well as the area east of Chancery Lane...
. The park at Finsbury Circus
Finsbury Circus
Finsbury Circus is an elliptical square with its long axis lying east-west in the City of London, England; with an area of 2.2 hectares it is the largest public open space within the City's boundaries. It has an immaculately maintained Lawn Bowls club in the centre, which has existed in the gardens...
was known as "Morton's Park" in Corporation circles, because it was mainly due to his work that the gardens had been opened to the public after being compulsorily purchased
Compulsory purchase order
A compulsory purchase order is a legal function in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland that allows certain bodies which need to obtain land or property to do so without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for public betterment - for...
by the Corporation through powers in the City of London (Various Powers) Act 1900. Morton was one of those who gave evidence in support of the proposal to the House of Commons Select Committee
Select Committee
A select committee is a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues originating in the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
which scrutinised the Bill in March 1900. The Act received Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
in July 1900, and in August of each year Morton made an annual gift to the Lord Mayor of London
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
of the first crop of mulberries
Mulberry
Morus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae. The 10–16 species of deciduous trees it contains are commonly known as Mulberries....
from the park's gardens.
He was later a member of the City and Guilds of London Institute
City and Guilds of London Institute
The City and Guilds of London Institute is a leading United Kingdom vocational education organisation. City & Guilds offers more than 500 qualifications over the whole range of industry sectors through 8500 colleges and training providers in 81 countries worldwide...
, a member of the Commission of Lieutenancy of the City of London
Lord Lieutenant of the City of London
The City of London is unique in that the post of Lord-Lieutenant is held in commission. The Lord Mayor of the City of London is the head of the Commission of Lieutenancy....
, a governor of St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital, also known as Barts, is a hospital in Smithfield in the City of London, England.-Early history:It was founded in 1123 by Raherus or Rahere , a favourite courtier of King Henry I...
, and chairman of the Metropolitan Paving Committee.
In January 1918 he was appointed as a trustee of the Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
, as a representative of the City of London Corporation.
Parliament
Morton first stood for ParliamentParliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
at the 1885 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1885
-Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...
, when he when he contested Hythe
Hythe (UK Parliament constituency)
Hythe was a constituency centred on the town of Hythe in Kent. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons until 1832, when its representation was reduced to one member...
, and was unsuccessful again in Christchurch
Christchurch (UK Parliament constituency)
Christchurch is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Centred on the town of Christchurch in Dorset, it elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
at the 1886 election
United Kingdom general election, 1886
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the UK general election, 1886*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
. He won a seat three years later, when he was elected at a by-election in October 1889 as the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Peterborough
Peterborough (UK Parliament constituency)
Peterborough is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, formally styled The Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past...
, after the death of the Liberal Unionist
Liberal Unionist Party
The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington and Joseph Chamberlain, the party formed a political alliance with the Conservative Party in opposition to Irish Home Rule...
MP John Wentworth-FitzWilliam
John Wentworth-FitzWilliam
William John Wentworth-FitzWilliam , was a British Liberal politician.Wentworth-FitzWilliam was the fifth son of William Wentworth-FitzWilliam, 6th Earl FitzWilliam, and his wife Lady Frances Harriet, daughter of George Douglas, 17th Earl of Morton...
, becoming the 81st new MP since since the general election in 1886. His victory was unexpected, and when the result was declared he said that he hoped his victory would be seen as a gesture of conciliation Ireland. He was re-elected in 1892
United Kingdom general election, 1892
The 1892 United Kingdom general election was held from 4 July to 26 July 1892. It saw the Conservatives, led by Lord Salisbury, win the greatest number of seats, but not enough for an overall majority as William Ewart Gladstone's Liberals won many more seats than in the 1886 general election...
, and raised in Parliament the issue of the appointment of Justices of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
(magistrates) in April 1893. In November that year, 280 Gladstonian
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
MPs met the Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
, Lord Herschell
Farrer Herschell, 1st Baron Herschell
Farrer Herschell, 1st Baron Herschell GCB, PC, QC was Lord Chancellor of Great Britain in 1886, and again from 1892 to 1895.-Early career:...
, in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
to discuss the system. Morton led the respose to the Lord Chancellor's explanation and defence of the existing system of appointment, and denounced the reliance on advice from Lord Lieutenant
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
s who were entirely dependant on what Morton called "class cliques". He was also a member of a Select Committee
Select Committee
A select committee is a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues originating in the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
set up to examine the accommodation provided for members and officials of the House of Commons. Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
At the 1895 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1895
The United Kingdom general election of 1895 was held from 13 July - 7 August 1895. It was won by the Conservatives led by Lord Salisbury who formed an alliance with the Liberal Unionist Party and had a large majority over the Liberals, led by Lord Rosebery...
, Morton was defeated in Peterborough by the Liberal Unionist Robert Purvis
Robert Purvis (MP)
Sir Robert Purvis LL.D was an English barrister and Liberal Unionist politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1895 to 1905 as the Member of Parliament for Peterborough.- Early life :...
. He continued to "nurse" the constituency in the hope of a return at the next election, but in May 1900 the Peterborough Liberal Association rejected a motion to adopt him as their candidate, choosing instead Halley Stewart
Halley Stewart
Sir Halley Stewart was an English businessman, journalist, philanthropist and Liberal Party politician who sat as an Member of Parliament from 1887 to 1895 and again from 1906 to 1910.-Family and education:...
, the former MP for Spalding
Spalding (UK Parliament constituency)
Spalding was a county constituency in Lincolnshire, which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
.
He contested Bath
Bath (UK Parliament constituency)
Bath is a constituency in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, previously of the House of Commons of England. It is an ancient constituency which has been constantly represented in Parliament since boroughs were first summoned to send members in the 13th century...
at the general election in October 1900
United Kingdom general election, 1900
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
, supported by a campaigning visit from former Liberal leader Sir William Vernon Harcourt
William Vernon Harcourt (politician)
Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt was a British lawyer, journalist and Liberal statesman. He served as Member of Parliament for various constituencies and held the offices of Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer under William Ewart Gladstone before becoming Leader of...
.
However, the city's two seats were won by a Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and a Liberal Unionist, and Morton was the last-placed of the four candidates. After eleven years out of the Commons, he was returned at the 1906 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
as MP for the Scottish county of Sutherland
Sutherland (UK Parliament constituency)
Sutherland was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918. It represented essentially the traditional county of Sutherland, electing one Member of Parliament...
, defeating the sitting Liberal Unionist MP Frederick Leveson-Gower. He was re-elected for Sutherland in both the January and December 1910 elections, and held the seat until the constituency was abolished at the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
.
In July 1910 he abstained on the Second Reading vote on the Parliamentary Franchise (Women) Bill, but voted in favour of Bill being referred to a Committee of the Whole House
Committee of the Whole House
In the United Kingdom House of Commons, the Committee of the Whole House is used instead of a standing committee for the clause-by-clause debate of important or contentious bills...
.
He was knighted on 6 February 1918, at a ceremony in Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
where the new knights (who included the architect Edwin Lutyens
Edwin Lutyens
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, OM, KCIE, PRA, FRIBA was a British architect who is known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era...
) were introduced to King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
by the Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
Sir George Cave
George Cave, 1st Viscount Cave
George Cave, 1st Viscount Cave GCMG, KC, PC was a British lawyer and Conservative politician. He was Home Secretary under David Lloyd George from 1916 to 1919 and served as Lord Chancellor of Great Britain from 1922 to 1924 and again from 1924 to 1928.-Background and education:Cave was born in...
.
Morton died on 26 April 1923, aged about 83. A memorial service for him was held on 2 May in the church of St Dunstan-in-the-West
St Dunstan-in-the-West
The Guild Church of St Dunstan-in-the-West is in Fleet Street in London, England. An octagonal-shaped building, it is dedicated to a former bishop of London and archbishop of Canterbury.-History:...
in Fleet Street
Fleet Street
Fleet Street is a street in central London, United Kingdom, named after the River Fleet, a stream that now flows underground. It was the home of the British press until the 1980s...
, where he had been a churchwarden
Churchwarden
A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish church or congregation of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer. Holders of these positions are ex officio members of the parish board, usually called a vestry, parish council, parochial church council, or in the case of a...
, and had led the opposition 1919 to a proposal by the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
's Commission on the City Churches to demolish St Dunstans and 18 other churches.