Sir James Spaight (1818 – 21 January 1892) was an Irish

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician.

Early life

Spaight was the second son of Francis Spaight, the owner of the ill-fated Francis Spaight ship, and Agnes Paterson, daughter of James Campbell Paterson.

Political career

In 1853, he was

High Sheriff of Limerick City The High Sheriff of Limerick City was the Sovereign's judicial representative in the city of the City of Limerick. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of ...

and later, in 1856, 1877 and 1883, he was

Mayor of Limerick The Mayor of Limerick is the head of the local government of the Limerick, City and County Limerick, County of Limerick. It is a directly elected office with a five-year term. Following the 2024 Limerick mayoral election, John Moran (Mayor of Li ...

. From 1871 to his death, he was president of the Limerick

Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

. At some point, he was also a justice of the peace and Deputy Lieutenant for

County Tipperary County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...

. Spaight was elected unopposed as MP for

Limerick City Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

at a by-election in May 1858 but lost the seat at the next general election in 1859. He attempted to regain the seat on multiple occasions – in

1865 Events January * January 4 – The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at 10-12 Broad near Wall Street, in New York City. * January 13 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Fort Fisher – Unio ...

1874 Events January * January 1 – New York City annexes The Bronx. * January 2 – Ignacio María González becomes head of state of the Dominican Republic for the first time. * January 3 – Third Carlist War: Battle of Caspe &n ...

1879 Events January * January 1 ** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. ** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...

1880 Events January *January 27 – Thomas Edison is granted a patent for the incandescent light bulb. Edison filed for a US patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires." gr ...

1883 Events January * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * January 16 – ...

and

1885 Events January * January 3– 4 – Sino-French War – Battle of Núi Bop: French troops under General Oscar de Négrier defeat a numerically superior Qing Chinese force, in northern Vietnam. * January 17 – Mahdist ...

– but was each time unsuccessful. Spaight was knighted in 1887.

Other interests

Spaight was a subscriber, council member and then, in 1869, president of the

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. He was the president of the

Limerick Chamber Limerick Chamber of Commerce, also known as Limerick Chamber, was founded in 1805 in Limerick, Ireland. It is a business representative and lobbying organisation which supports approximately 450 members. As of 2021, the president was Noel Gavin ...

from 1871–92, his father Francis was president from 1847–61. He was the vice-president of the Limerick Protestant Young Mens Association. Spaight was also an active freemason, serving as Provincial Grand Master of North Munster. Spaight was also a keen sailor, being made commodore of Lough Derg Yacht Club from 1846. One of his yachts, the ''Gossamer'', was badly damaged by fire in 1846. Spaight had taken took a party of friends out on Lough Derg on Friday and returned back to Derry Castle at 10 o'clock. The yacht was powered by steam, and all the fires were quenched before the party disembarked, but the yacht was found to be completely burned to the waterline the following morning. One of Spaight's other yachts included the 12-ton sailing yacht ''Gem'', which he used to compete in Lough Derg Yacht Club in 1847.Nenagh Guardian, 7 Aug 1847

Personal life

He married Elizabeth Alason Eckford, daughter of John Eckford, in 1850.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spaight, James 1818 births 1892 deaths UK MPs 1857–1859 Mayors of Limerick (city) Deputy lieutenants of Tipperary Deputy lieutenants in Ireland High sheriffs of Limerick City Irish Conservative Party MPs Irish justices of the peace Irish knights Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Limerick constituencies (1801–1922)