Edward Thomason

Edward Thomason's Convener portrait.
Image supplied by the Shetland Islands Council.

Edward Thomason OBE (b. 12 August 1922, 105a Commercial Street, Lerwick, d. 16 December 1997, Aberdeen) was a Zetland County Councillor, Shetland Islands Councillor and Convener.

Biography

He was the son of Edward Thomason (b. 5 Nov 1885, Horn, Lunnasting) and Mary Margaret Anderson (b. 15 Sep 1887, Treawick, Whalsay). He married Dinah Janet McPherson Patterson Hunter, (b. 10 Jan 1921, Nesting) on 25 November 1949 at Newington, Edinburgh.

He was Prudential Assurance Manager in Lerwick, and a councillor, later Convener, retiring in 1994. His book Island Challenge (1997) reflects in part on the era of North Sea Oil. He also provided an introduction to Mindin Rhoda, a Festschrift for the poet Rhoda Bulter whose mother also came from 'Da Horn'.

In an obituary in The Herald, Edward was described as overseeing the "transformation of his native islands from being a poverty-stricken community dominated by the highest unemployment rate in Scotland and haemorrhaging its most able young population to an island group enjoying an unprecedentedly high standard of living" in reference to his work securing the Zetland County Council Act 1974. That act granted the Zetland County Council and Shetland Islands Council substantial powers to ensure that Shetland was able to benefit from the boom in oil production which began in the 1970's.

In the late 1950s Edward was one of a group of islanders wanted to fix Shetland's deep social problems. The collapse of the whaling and herring industry had hurt the isles financially. The group, successively called the Shetland Development Council and the Shetland Council of Social Service, persuaded businessmen to establish a canning factory and launched an initiative to sell locally-built boats via London's International Boat Show.

In 1989, he was granted an OBE and he spent his final living months in the eponymous Edward Thomason House for the elderly in Lerwick.

He unsuccessfully contested the Unst North seat at the 1973 County Council election.

Political Career

Shetland Islands Council

• Shetland Islands Council Election May 1974
• Shetland Islands Council Election May 1978
• Shetland Islands Council Election May 1982
• Shetland Islands Council Election May 1986
• Shetland Islands Council Election May 1990

Zetland County Council

• County Council Election May 1961
• County Council Election May 1964
• County Council Election May 1967
• County Council Election May 1970
• County Council Election May 1973

External Links

• Bayanne genealogy page

Conveners
Preceded by Alexander Tulloch	Convener of the Shetland Islands Council 1986-1994	Succeeded by Lewis Shand Smith

Shetland Islands Council
Constituency created	Member for Nesting 1974-1978	Succeeded by Benji Hunter
Constituency created	Member for Lerwick Harbour 1978-1994	Constituency abolished

Conveners
Preceded by Robert A. Johnson	Convener of the Zetland County Council 1970-1973	Succeeded by George Blance

Zetland County Council
Preceded by Laurence Edmondston	Member for Unst North 1961-1973	Succeeded by William Thomson