1889 Kesteven County Council election

The first elections to Kesteven County Council were held on Thursday, 17 January 1889. Kesteven was one of three divisions of the historic county of Lincolnshire in England; it consisted of the ancient wapentakes (or hundreds) of Aswardhurn, Aveland, Beltisloe, Boothby Graffoe, Flaxwell, Langoe, Loveden, Ness, and Winnibriggs and Threo.^[1] The Local Government Act 1888 established Kesteven as an administrative county, governed by a Council;^[2] elections were held every three years from 1889, until it was abolished by the Local Government Act 1972, which established Lincolnshire County Council in its place.^[3]^[4]

The administrative county of Kesteven (1889–1974), shown within England.

The forty-six electoral divisions of the new Council were outlined in December 1888. All but two returned one candidate: Sleaford and Quarrington and Bourne and Morton returned two each. The town of Grantham was represented across seven divisions, while Stamford had four.^[5] Twenty-one candidates (including both for Sleaford) were returned unopposed. The remainder were informed of the result on the day after polling. Votes were counted in one of the court rooms in Lincoln; the Sheriff of Lincolnshire, A. S. Leslie-Melville, was the presiding officer, while R. A. Stephens was his deputy for Kesteven.^[6]

Results by division

Ancaster

Ancaster^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	William Avery	180
	Henry Smith BA	128
	Edmund Lucas-Calcraft JP	35
Turnout

Barrowby

Barrowby^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Sir W. E. Welby-Gregory Bt JP	NA	NA

Bassingham

Bassingham^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	The Viscount St Vincent JP	218
	William Brocklebank	168
Turnout

Bennington

Bennington^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	William Hutchinson	258
	John Earle Welby JP	206
Turnout

Billingborough

Billingborough^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Captain Henry Smith JP	207
		Edward John Grummitt	246

Billinghay

Billinghay^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		J. D. Bowling	NA	NA

Bourne and Morton

Bourne and Morton^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	William Robert Wherry	578
	John Derry	527
	Christopher Gilbert Peacock JP	309
	Thomas Lawrence	204
Turnout

= Two seats

Bracebridge

Bracebridge^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		W. J. Warrener	NA	NA

Branston

Branston^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		E. J. Howard	NA	NA

Bytham

Bytham^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Augustus Charles Johnson JP	180
	William Hayes	160
Turnout

Caythorpe

Caythorpe^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Colonel F. Fane JP	NA	NA

Claypole

Claypole^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		George Nevile JP	NA	NA

Colsterworth

Colsterworth^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Eli Crabtree	250
		Robert Heathcote JP	139

Corby

Corby^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		The Lord Willoughby de Eresby JP	NA	NA

Deeping

Deeping^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		W. Holland JP	NA	NA

Gonerby

Gonerby^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Thomas Newton	205
	Thomas Pask	188
Turnout

Grantham no. 1

Grantham no. 1^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	John Bailey	212
	John Basker	102
Turnout

Grantham no. 2

Grantham no. 2^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		G. S. Hannett	NA	NA

Grantham no. 3

Grantham no. 3^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		A. Hutchinson	NA	NA

Grantham no. 4

Grantham no. 4^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Edward Staveley Harding	294
	William Fillingham	86
Turnout

Grantham no. 5

Grantham no. 5^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		W. L. Wand	NA	NA

Grantham no. 6

Grantham no. 6^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		J. W. Martin	NA	NA

Grantham no. 7

Grantham no. 7^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		W. B. Harrison	NA	NA

Heckington

Heckington^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	James Hubbard	204
	Bruce Tomlinson	148
	Samuel Lamb	21
Turnout

Heighington

Heighington^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		C. C. Sibthorpe	NA	NA

Helpringham

Helpringham^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Edward Clarkson Rowe	198
	George Ranyard Lee	185
Turnout

Kyme

Kyme^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		The Earl of Winchelsea and Nottingham JP	NA	NA

Martin

Martin^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	John Hague Copping	264
	William Bilton Harris	91
Turnout

Metheringham

Metheringham^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	William Shearburn Fox	194
	William Dundas Gilpim-Brown	187
Turnout

Navenby

Navenby^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Major Arthur Cecil Tempest JP	180
	Charles Edward Marfleet	143
Turnout

Osbournby

Osbournby^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Thomas Arthur Robert Heathcote JP	220
	Seth Ellis Dean Jr	166
Turnout

Ponton

Ponton^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Sir H. A. H. Cholmeley Bt JP	NA	NA

Rippingale

Rippingale^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	William Bacon	227
	Rev. William Wright Layng	94
Turnout

Ropsley

Ropsley^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Captain Cecil Thorold JP	216
	William Jackson	168
Turnout

Ruskington

Ruskington^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Captain Neville Henry Reeve JP	255
	Samuel Pattinson	183
Turnout

Skellingthorpe

Skillingthorpe^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		G. E. Jarvis JP	NA	NA

Sleaford and Quarrington

Sleaford and Quarrington*^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		G. H. W. Hervey JP	NA	NA
		Charles Sharpe	NA	NA

= Two seats

Stamford (All Saints)

Stamford (Stamford All Saints)^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Charles Chapman	271
	Herbert Hart	255
Turnout

Stamford (St George's)

Stamford (St George's)^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	John Seaton Loweth	192
	Valentine Stapleton	155
Turnout

Stamford (St Michael's and St John's)

Stamford (St Michael's and St John's)^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Orlando Edmonds	132
	Henry Knott JP	117
Turnout

Stamford (St Martin's and St Mary's)

Stamford (St Martin's and St Mary's)^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Charles Handson	144
	William Jonathan Bettle	62
Turnout

Thurlby

Thurlby^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Robert Peasgood	203
	Charles Whattof	177
Turnout

Uffington

Uffington^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	The Lord Kesteven JP	283
	William Cross	62
Turnout

Waddington

Waddington^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		R. G. Ellison JP	NA	NA

Wellingore

Wellingore^[6]
Party	Candidate	Votes
	Richard Newcombe Morley	192
	Richard Blankley Burrows	155
Turnout

Wilsford

Wilsford^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Colonel M. Willson JP	NA	NA

By-elections in February 1889

The Council held its first meeting on 31 January, where it elected a Chairman and sixteen aldermen.^[6] If a councillor were elected an alderman, he had to forfeit his seat. Eleven members of the Council were elected to the aldermanic bench, which meant that their seats became vacant, triggering by-elections. Colonel Willson, who had been returned for Wilsford at the first round of elections, was disqualified because he held a paid commission in the armed forces; this triggered a by-election. All twelve were held on 18 February; four candidates stood unopposed.^[7]