James Baird

James Baird (November 30, 1828 – May 30, 1915) was a Scottish-born Newfoundland merchant and politician.

Early life and business

Baird was born in Saltcoats in Ayrshire, Scotland, the son of Hugh Baird and Margaret (née Anderson). He emigrated to Newfoundland at the age of 16 in 1844 and soon established himself as a prominent merchant. Alongside a brother and later his nephew, the Baird family built up a business which included a large array of general merchandise and eventually branched into the fishery supply business. He was an early steam yacht owner: the Griffin was built in 1865 for him by Aitken & Mansel, Whiteinch, Glasgow, Scotland. By the mid-1880s, James Baird Ltd. had entered the fish export trade and survived both the St. John's fire in 1892 and the banking collapse a few years later. He was highly important in the founding and supporting of many industries.

Baird's summer house, known as both Bryn Mawr Cottage and Baird Cottage, was built in 1905 by architect William F. Butler. It burned in an early morning fire in December 2022.