Ayr Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)

Ayr Burghs was a district of burghs constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1800 and of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP), using the first-past-the-post voting system.

Ayr Burghs
Former district of Burghs constituency for the House of Commons
Subdivisions of Scotland	Ayrshire, Argyllshire
1708–1950
Seats	1
Created from	Ayr, Campbeltown, Inveraray, Irvine, Rothesay
Replaced by	Ayr, Central Ayrshire, Bute and Northern Ayrshire

Creation

The British parliamentary constituency was created in 1708 following the Acts of Union 1707 and replaced the former Parliament of Scotland burgh constituencies of Ayr, Campbeltown, Inveraray, Irvine and Rothesay.

Boundaries

The list of parliamentary burghs represented by the constituency changed in 1832 and again in 1918:

• 1708 to 1832: the Ayrshire burghs of Ayr and Irvine, the Argyllshire burghs of Campbeltown and Inveraray and the Buteshire burgh of Rothesay^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

• 1832 to 1918: the Ayrshire burghs of Ayr and Irvine and the Argyllshire burghs of Campbeltown, Inveraray and Oban
• 1918 to 1950: the Ayrshire burghs of Ardrossan, Ayr, Irvine, Prestwick, Saltcoats and Troon

When the Ayr Burghs constituency was abolished in 1950, the Ayr and Prestwick burghs were merged into the county constituency of Ayr. Ardrossan and Saltcoats were merged into Bute and Northern Ayrshire and Irvine and Troon were merged into Central Ayrshire.

Members of Parliament

Election		Member	Party
	1708	Hon. James Campbell
	1710	Charles Oliphant
	1720 by-election	Thomas Kennedy	Tory
	1721 by-election	Duncan Forbes	Whig
	1722	William Steuart
	1734	James Stuart
	1741	The Earl of Granard
	1747	Charles Erskine
	1749 by-election	Sir Henry Erskine
	1754	James Stuart-Mackenzie
	1761	Lord Frederick Campbell
	1761 by-election	Alexander Wedderburn
	1768	James Stuart
	1774	Sir George Macartney
	1776 by-election	Frederick Stuart
	1780	Archibald Edmonstone	Tory
	1790	Charles Stuart
	1794 by-election	John Campbell of Liston Hall
	1807	John Campbell of Shawfield and Islay
	1809 by-election	Duncan Campbell	Whig
	1818	Thomas Francis Kennedy	Whig[6]
	1834 by-election	Lord Patrick Crichton-Stuart	Whig[6][7][8]
	1852	Edward Craufurd	Radical[9][10][11]
	1859		Liberal
	1874	Sir William Montgomery-Cuninghame	Conservative
	1880	Richard Campbell	Liberal
	1886		Liberal Unionist
	1888 by-election	John Sinclair	Liberal
	1890 by-election	James Somervell	Conservative
	1892	William Birkmyre	Liberal
	1895	Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing	Conservative
	1904 by-election	Joseph Dobbie	Liberal
	1906	Sir George Younger	Conservative
	1922	Sir John Baird	Conservative
	1925	Thomas Moore	Conservative
1950		constituency abolished

Sir Thomas was elected, in 1950, as the first MP for the then new constituency of Ayr

Elections

Decades:

1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1830: Ayr Burghs^[6][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Thomas Francis Kennedy	Unopposed
	Whig hold

General election 1831: Ayr Burghs^[6][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Thomas Francis Kennedy	Unopposed
	Whig hold

Kennedy was appointed as a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 5 March 1832: Ayr Burghs^[6][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Thomas Francis Kennedy	Unopposed
	Whig hold

General election 1832: Ayr Burghs^[6][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Thomas Francis Kennedy	375	65.6
	Radical	John Taylor	164	28.7
	Tory	James Cruickshanks	33	5.8
Majority			211	36.9
Turnout			572	90.6
Registered electors			631
	Whig hold

Kennedy resigned, causing a by-election.

By-election, 3 March 1834: Ayr Burghs^[6][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Patrick Crichton-Stuart	305	58.9	−6.7
	Radical	John Taylor	213	41.1	+12.4
Majority			92	17.8	−19.1
Turnout			518	73.9	−16.7
Registered electors			701
	Whig hold		Swing	−9.6

General election 1835: Ayr Burghs^[6][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Patrick Crichton-Stuart	339	51.2	−14.4
	Radical	Alexander Johnstone[14]	323	48.8	+20.1
Majority			16	2.4	−34.5
Turnout			662	78.1	−12.5
Registered electors			848
	Whig hold		Swing	−17.3

General election 1837: Ayr Burghs^[6][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Patrick Crichton-Stuart	368	50.9	−0.3
	Radical	Alexander Johnstone	355	49.1	+0.3
Majority			13	1.8	−0.6
Turnout			723	70.2	−7.9
Registered electors			1,030
	Whig hold		Swing	−0.3

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Patrick Crichton-Stuart	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,097
	Whig hold

General election 1847: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Patrick Crichton-Stuart	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,051
	Whig hold

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Radical	Edward Craufurd	338	50.7	N/A
	Conservative	Archibald Thomas Boyle[15]	329	49.3	New
Majority			9	1.4	N/A
Turnout			667	64.2	N/A
Registered electors			1,039
	Radical gain from Whig		Swing	N/A

General election 1857: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Radical	Edward Craufurd	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,136
	Radical hold

General election 1859: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edward Craufurd	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,203
	Liberal hold

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1860s

General election 1865: Ayr Burghs^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edward Craufurd	567	53.1	N/A
	Liberal	Alexander Haldane Oswald[16]	501	46.9	N/A
Majority			66	6.2	N/A
Turnout			1,068	79.7	N/A
Registered electors			1,340
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1868: Ayr Burghs^[17][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edward Craufurd	1,116	52.1	−1.0
	Liberal	James Anderson	1,025	47.9	+1.0
Majority			91	4.2	−2.0
Turnout			2,141	83.5	+3.8
Registered electors			2,565
	Liberal hold		Swing	−1.0

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Ayr Burghs ^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Montgomery-Cuninghame	1,697	50.2	New
	Liberal	Edward Craufurd	1,683	49.8	−2.3
Majority			14	0.4	N/A
Turnout			3,380	82.6	−0.9
Registered electors			4,092
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	N/A

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Ayr Burghs ^[18][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Richard Campbell	2,303	61.9	+12.1
	Conservative	William Montgomery-Cuninghame	1,420	38.1	−12.1
Majority			883	23.8	N/A
Turnout			3,723	86.6	+4.0
Registered electors			4,297
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+12.1

General election 1885: Ayr Burghs ^[19][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Richard Campbell	2,460	53.7	−8.2
	Conservative	Malcolm Low	2,118	46.3	+8.2
Majority			342	7.4	−16.4
Turnout			4,578	84.0	−2.6
Registered electors			5,449
	Liberal hold		Swing	−8.2

General election 1886: Ayr Burghs ^[19][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Unionist	Richard Campbell	2,673	64.1	+17.8
	Liberal	John Sinclair	1,498	35.9	−17.8
Majority			1,175	28.2	N/A
Turnout			4,171	76.5	−7.5
Registered electors			5,449
	Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal		Swing	+17.8

Campbell's death caused a by-election.

By-election, 15 Jun 1888: Ayr Burghs^[19][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Sinclair	2,321	50.6	+14.7
	Liberal Unionist	Evelyn Ashley	2,268	49.4	−14.7
Majority			53	1.2	N/A
Turnout			4,589	84.1	+7.6
Registered electors			5,458
	Liberal gain from Liberal Unionist		Swing	+14.7

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1890s

By-election, 1890: Ayr Burghs^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Somervell	2,610	51.3	−12.8
	Liberal	E. Routledge[21]	2,480	48.7	+12.8
Majority			130	2.6	−25.6
Turnout			5,090	87.8	+11.3
Registered electors			5,798
	Conservative hold		Swing	−12.8

General election 1892: Ayr Burghs ^[22][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	William Birkmyre	2,760	50.1	+14.2
	Conservative	James Somervell	2,753	49.9	−14.2
Majority			7	0.2	N/A
Turnout			5,513	88.3	+11.8
Registered electors			6,245
	Liberal gain from Liberal Unionist		Swing	+14.2

General election 1895: Ayr Burghs ^[23][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles Orr-Ewing	3,057	52.9	+3.0
	Liberal	William Birkmyre	2,722	47.1	−3.0
Majority			335	5.8	N/A
Turnout			5,779	88.9	+0.6
Registered electors			6,498
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+3.0

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Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Ayr Burghs ^[23][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles Orr-Ewing	3,101	55.3	+2.4
	Liberal	Edmond Charles Browne	2,511	44.7	−2.4
Majority			590	10.6	+4.8
Turnout			5,612	82.3	−6.6
Registered electors			6,819
	Conservative hold		Swing	+2.4

Dobbie

1904 Ayr Burghs by-election^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Joseph Dobbie	3,221	50.3	+5.6
	Conservative	George Younger	3,177	49.7	−5.6
Majority			44	0.6	N/A
Turnout			6,398	88.4	+6.1
Registered electors			7,240
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+5.6

Younger

General election 1906: Ayr Burghs ^[24][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Younger	3,766	51.8	−3.5
	Liberal	Joseph Dobbie	3,505	48.2	+3.5
Majority			261	3.6	−7.0
Turnout			7,271	90.5	+8.2
Registered electors			8,031
	Conservative hold		Swing	−3.5

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Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Ayr Burghs ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Younger	3,647	50.4	−1.4
	Liberal	William Robertson	3,594	49.6	+1.4
Majority			53	0.8	−2.8
Turnout			7,241	89.8	−0.7
Registered electors			8,067
	Conservative hold		Swing	−1.4

General election December 1910: Ayr Burghs ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Younger	3,852	51.6	+1.2
	Liberal	William Robertson	3,620	48.4	−1.2
Majority			232	3.2	+2.4
Turnout			7,472	90.7	+0.9
Registered electors			8,236
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.2

General election 1918: Ayr Burghs ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
C	Unionist	George Younger	9,565	49.1	−2.5
	Liberal	Murdoch McKenzie Wood	5,410	27.7	−20.7
	Labour	Campbell Stephen	4,534	23.2	New
Majority			4,155	21.4	+18.2
Turnout			19,509	62.2	−28.5
	Unionist hold		Swing	+9.0
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Ayr Burghs ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	John Baird	11,179	44.5	−4.6
	Liberal	Peter Raffan	7,402	29.5	+1.8
	Labour	John McDiarmid Airlie	6,533	26.0	+2.8
Majority			3,777	15.0	−6.4
Turnout			25,114	71.1	+8.9
	Unionist hold		Swing	−3.2

General election 1923: Ayr Burghs ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	John Baird	10,206	41.8	−2.7
	Labour	John McDiarmid Airlie	7,732	31.7	+5.7
	Liberal	William Pringle	6,467	26.5	−3.0
Majority			2,474	10.1	−4.9
Turnout			24,405	70.0	−1.1
	Unionist hold		Swing	−4.2

Sir John Baird

General election 1924: Ayr Burghs ^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	John Baird	16,153	62.3	+20.5
	Labour	John McDiarmid Airlie	9,787	37.7	+6.0
Majority			6,366	24.6	+14.5
Turnout			25,940	73.5	+3.5
	Unionist hold		Swing

Patrick Dollan

William Pringle

1925 Ayr Burghs by-election^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Thomas Moore	11,601	46.2	−16.1
	Labour	Patrick Dollan	8,813	35.2	−2.5
	Liberal	William Pringle	4,656	18.6	New
Majority			2,788	11.0	−13.6
Turnout			25,070	71.0	−2.5
	Unionist hold		Swing

General election 1929: Ayr Burghs^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Thomas Moore	16,874	45.9	−16.3
	Labour	Clarice Shaw	13,429	36.5	−1.2
	Liberal	Robert Lorimer	6,479	17.6	N/A
Majority			3,445	9.4	−15.2
Turnout			36,782	74.8	+1.3
	Unionist hold		Swing

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Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Ayr Burghs^[32]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Thomas Moore	28,256	73.9	+28.0
	Labour	Clarice Shaw	9,974	26.1	−10.4
Majority			18,282	47.8	+38.4
Turnout			38,230	76.9	+2.1
	Unionist hold		Swing

General election 1935: Ayr Burghs ^[33]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Thomas Moore	25,893	66.1	−7.8
	Labour	Arthur Brady	13,274	33.9	+7.8
Majority			12,619	32.2	−15.6
Turnout			39,167	73.0	−3.9
	Unionist hold		Swing

Back to Elections

Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Ayr Burghs ^[34]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Thomas Moore	22,593	50.8	−15.3
	Labour	William Ross	21,865	49.2	+15.3
Majority			728	1.6	−30.6
Turnout			44,458	71.5	−1.5
	Unionist hold		Swing

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See also

• List of former Parliamentary constituencies in the United Kingdom

References

1. "Ayr Burghs". History of Parliament Online (1690-1715). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
2. "Ayr Burghs". History of Parliament Online (1715-1754). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
3. "Ayr Burghs". History of Parliament Online (1754-1790). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
4. "Ayr Burghs". History of Parliament Online (1790-1820). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
5. "Ayr Burghs". History of Parliament Online (1820-1832). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
6. Smith, Henry Stooks (1841). The Register of Parliamentary Contested Elections (Second ed.). Simpkin, Marshall & Company. pp. 196–197. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
7. Churton, Edward (1836). The Assembled Commons or Parliamentary Biographer: 1836. p. 216. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
8. "Election Prospects". Morning Post. 22 June 1841. pp. 3–4. Retrieved 1 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
9. Huddie, Paul (2015). The Crimean War and Irish History. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-78138-254-7. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
10. Fry, Michael (2013). A New Race of Men: Scotland, 1815–1914. Edinburgh: Birlinn. p. 309. ISBN 978-0-85790-659-5. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
11. "Civil Service Departments in Scotland". The Scottish Continental Herring Trade 1810–1914. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
12. Fisher, David R. "Ayr Burghs". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
13. Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
14. "Ayr Burghs". Morning Advertiser. 4 August 1837. p. 2. Retrieved 7 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
15. "Ayr Burghs". Bell's Weekly Messenger. 10 July 1852. p. 3. Retrieved 1 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
16. "Representation of Ayr District". Glasgow Morning Journal. 17 May 1865. p. 1. Retrieved 28 January 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
17. Debrett's House of Commons, 1870
18. The Times, 29 April 1880
19. Debrett's House of Commons and Judicial Bench, 1889
20. Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.
21. "The Ayr Election". The Cardiff Times. 29 March 1890. p. 7. Retrieved 15 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
22. Whitaker's Almanack, 1893
23. Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1901
24. Whitaker's Almanack, 1907
25. Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1916
26. Whitaker's Almanack, 1920
27. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
28. The Times, 8 December 1923
29. Oliver and Boyd's Edinburgh Almanack, 1927
30. The Times, 13 June 1925
31. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
32. Whitaker's Almanack, 1934
33. Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
34. "Politics Science Resources". 12 October 2022.