Henry Farmer-Atkinson

Caricature of Henry John Atkinson MP (circa 1890), by Harry Furniss. Henry John Atkinson, later Henry John Farmer-Atkinson JP, MP, (1828–1913) was an English Conservative Party politician and shipowner.

Atkinson was Mayor of Hull twice, in 1864 and 1865. That constituency was abolished under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, and at the 1885 general election he stood in the new Brigg division of Lincolnshire, but lost to his Liberal opponent, taking only 35% of the vote. At the 1886 general election he stood in Boston, winning the seat by a narrow majority of 48 votes (2%) from the sitting Liberal MP William Ingram. He did not defend the seat, when it was regained by Ingram.

He was a prominent Wesleyan Methodist layman, and was one of the 18 laymen nominated by the Wesleyan Methodist Conference of 1877 to attend the conference of 1878 - the first to include Lay Representation.

He was the founder and first president of The Chamber of Shipping of the United Kingdom.