William Jackson, 1st Baron Jackson

William Frederick Jackson, 1st Baron Jackson (29 November 1893 – 2 May 1954) was a British fruit farmer from Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire who was noted for his scientific cultivation of a range of fruits. He was a Liberal Party activist who joined the Labour Party, and became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brecon & Radnor from 1939 to 1945.

Early life Jackson was born in Birmingham, one of four sons of George Jackson, a justice of the peace from Edgbaston in Birmingham, and his wife Minnie Blay.

He was educated at King Edward's School in Birmingham, and when the First World War broke out he joined the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. He served in France from 1915 to 1916, and was promoted to serjeant and wounded in the Battle of the Somme. He returned to England as an invalid, and in 1919 he took over the family firms's lands at Glewstone, near Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire. The farms mostly grew apples, plums and strawberries, on over 400 intensively cultivated acres, and Jackson's scientific approach to farming led to him being treated as an authority on the farming matters both by farming organisations and by government. The election was a straight fight between Labour and Conservative candidate, but there had been an informal agreement between the local Liberal National Party and the Conservatives that only one of two parties would contest the seat, and the Liberal Nationals were aggrieved that the Conservatives had "jumped their claim" by nominating a candidate. They selected their own candidate, but were persuaded to withdraw to avoid splitting the non-socialist vote and thereby handing the seat to Labour,

With his Liberal background and extensive agricultural contacts in the area, Jackson won the seat with a majority of 6.8% of the votes, a 12% swing to Labour. In Parliament, he spoke for small farmers and cultivators, but was not a devoted follower of Labour Party policy; true to the old Liberal principle of free trade, he opposed all restraints on trade and production. entitling him to a seat in the House of Lords. The title became extinct on his death in 1954, aged 60.

Family In 1923 Jackson married Hope Hardy Gilmour, daughter of Benjamin Waterfall Gilmour from Glasgow. They adopted a son, who was unable to inherit the title, which was remaindered to "heirs male of his body", as is usual with British hereditary peerages.