John Lister

Who was John Lister?

John Lister was an English merchant and politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1621 and 1640.

Lister was the son of John Lister, a lead merchant of Hull who was mayor and MP for the town.

Lister succeeded his father and became mayor of Hull in 1618 and was elected Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull in 1621. He was re-elected in subsequent elections until King Charles I decided to rule without parliament in 1629. In 1629 Lister was again mayor of Hull and was knighted in 1632. In 1639 Lister entertained King Charles to a sumptuous dinner at his house in High Street.

In April 1640, Lister was re-elected MP for Hull in the Short Parliament and was re-elected in November 1640 for the Long Parliament. However he died in December.

Lister funded an hospital, which opened in 1641, for twelve elderly people, with rooms for a lecturer.

The house of the Lister family is now a museum known as the Wilberforce House Museum.