Montague Ainslie was an English forester and businessman whose interests included the iron ore company Harrison Ainslie

Harrison Ainslie

The firm of Harrison Ainslie & Co. was a British firm of ironmasters and iron ore merchants, selling high quality haematite from their mines on Lindal Moor to smelters in Glasgow, Scotland, South Wales and the Midlands. From a 21st century perspective, they are more interesting as the last...

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Ainslie was educated at Hawkshead Grammar School

Hawkshead Grammar School

Hawkshead Grammar School in Hawkshead, Cumbria, England was founded in 1585 by Archbishop Edwin Sandys, of York, who petitioned a charter from Queen Elizabeth I to set up a governing body. The early School taught Latin, Greek and sciences, including arithmetic and geometry...

. In the early nineteenth century, he inherited the Grizedale Estate from his parents, Henry Ainslie

Henry Ainslie

Henry Ainslie was a physician. Educated at Hawkshead Grammar School and then Pembroke College, Cambridge , he became a fellow of Pembroke in 1782, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1795...

 and Agnes Ford. In 1841 he converted Ford Lodge into a larger residence which became known as Grizedale New Hall. Like his parents before him, he planted vast numbers of larch

Larch

Larches are conifers in the genus Larix, in the family Pinaceae. Growing from 15 to 50m tall, they are native to much of the cooler temperate northern hemisphere, on lowlands in the north and high on mountains further south...

 trees in the valley, continuing the development and growth of Grizedale Forest

Grizedale Forest

Grizedale Forest is a 24.47 km² area of woodland in the Lake District of North West England, located to the east of Coniston Water and to the south of Hawkshead. It comprises a number of hills, small tarns and the settlements of Grizedale and Satterthwaite...

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He built Ford House in Ulverston

Ulverston

Ulverston is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria in north-west England. Historically part of Lancashire, the town is located in the Furness area, close to the Lake District, and just north of Morecambe Bay....

 for his son, William George Ainslie

William George Ainslie

William George Ainslie MP JP was a British Conservative politician, magistrate, ironmaster and stockbroker.-Early life:...

, who was chairman and major shareholder of the North Lonsdale Iron and Steel Company. William became the first MP

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,...

 for Lonsdale and moved to London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in 1865, after which Montague used Ford House as a town house from which to manage his business interests which included Harrison Ainslie

Harrison Ainslie

The firm of Harrison Ainslie & Co. was a British firm of ironmasters and iron ore merchants, selling high quality haematite from their mines on Lindal Moor to smelters in Glasgow, Scotland, South Wales and the Midlands. From a 21st century perspective, they are more interesting as the last...

, another Iron company and also an operator of shipping from Ulverston. Ford Park is now a community facility for residents of Ulverston

Ulverston

Ulverston is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria in north-west England. Historically part of Lancashire, the town is located in the Furness area, close to the Lake District, and just north of Morecambe Bay....

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