James Dennis Hird (28 January 1850 - 13 July 1920) was a British clergyman, educator and author.
Hird was born in Ashby, Lincolnshire (now part of Scunthorpe) to Robert and Fanny Dennis Hird née Kendall.[1][2] He was the second of five sons, though only three survived to adulthood.[1][2] In later life he became known by his middle name, Dennis, this being the maiden name of his maternal grandmother, Fanny Kendall.[1][2] The Kendall family, who was well known in Ashby, was credited as the main instigators in bringing Primitive Methodism to the hamlet.[2][3] Six of Dennis's maternal uncles were ordained ministers in this faith, along with a cousin, Holliday Bickerstaffe Kendall.[2][3] The Hird family were also Methodists and well known in the hamlet. Robert Hird was a grocer and Hird Terrace (no longer standing) was once named after the family.[2][4] Primitive Methodism was a big influence in Dennis's early life and may be the spark for his socialist tendencies, as it was more favoured by the working classes of the time.[5]
- ^ a b c John Beatson-Hird, Dennis Hird: Socialist Educator and Propagandist, First Principal of Ruskin College. Oxford : Ruskin College Library, 1999. ISBN 0-900183-20-9
- ^ a b c d e f Maria Borrill, The Kendall family from Ashby Lincolnshire: A Family History. Author: FastPrint, 2009. ISBN 978-1-84426-640-1
- ^ a b H. B. Kendall, The Origin and History of the Primitive Methodist Church, Vol 1. London: E. Dalton, 1906, pp. 429-432.
- ^ Harry Jackson, Scunthorpe a Pictorial History. Spiegl Pr, 1981, pp. 40-41.
- ^ Primitive Methodism