Andrew Mitchell Torrance

Andrew Mitchell Torrance (1845 – 4 February 1909)[1][2] was a Scottish Liberal Party politician.

Background

He was born in Old Cumnock, East Ayrshire in 1845. He was educated at Cumnock parish school. In 1861 he was apprenticed to Peter Kelso & Co., muslin manufacturers of Glasgow. In 1863, moving to London, he worked for Smith, Anderson & Co. In 1875, he became a partner and the firm changed its name to Miller, Son, & Torrance.[3] He was given a knighthood in 1906.[1]

Municipal career

He was elected to the London County Council as a Liberal backed Progressive Party member representing Islington East. He was re-elected on every occasion until standing down in 1907. He was Deputy Chairman of the London County Council in 1897-98 and again in 1900-01[4] and served as Chairman in 1901–02. He was also involved in Islington Borough municipal politics, being elected to the council and serving as mayor of Islington[3] from 1903 to 1905. In June 1903, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of the County of London.[5]

Parliamentary career

Torrance first stood for Parliament at the 1900 general election in Islington East (his London County Council seat), but lost by a wide margin to the sitting Conservative MP Benjamin Louis Cohen.

1900 General Election: Islington, East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Benjamin Cohen 4,205 61.9 3.8
Liberal Andrew Mitchell Torrance 2,586 38.1 -3.8
Majority 1,619 23.8
Turnout 10,395 65.3
Conservative hold Swing

At the next general election, in January 1906 he chose to contest a seat in his native Scotland and was elected as the MP for Glasgow Central (UK Parliament constituency), defeating the sitting Conservative MP John George Alexander Baird by a margin of 3.4%.

General election 1906: Glasgow Central[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Andrew Mitchell Torrance 6,720 51.7
Conservative John George Alexander Baird 6,289 48.3
Majority 3.4
Turnout
Liberal hold Swing

References

  1. 1 2 Who's Who
  2. ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "G" (part 1)
  3. 1 2 Glasgow Digital Library
  4. ↑ "London County Council". The Times. 14 March 1900. p. 3.
  5. ↑ "No. 27561". The London Gazette. 5 June 1903. p. 3583.
  6. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1907


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