Samuel Waring, 1st Baron Waring

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Samuel James Waring, 1st Baron Waring (19 April 1860 – 9 January 1940) was a British businessman, public servant and benefactor. He was born in Liverpool, the second son of Samuel James Waring and Sarah Ann Wells. His grandfather John Waring had started a cabinet-making business in Liverpool after moving there from Belfast in 1835.

In 1893, Waring opened a London branch of his family’s furniture company. In 1897 the firm merged with Gillow and Company to become Waring & Gillow, where he served as chairman. He was High Sheriff of Denbighshire from 1907 to 1908. He bought Foots Cray Place in Kent and put a lot of money into improving the gardens and estate. He also owned Gopsall Hall in Leicestershire.

During the First World War, Waring helped organise the production of war materials, including aircraft. He was active in charity and soldiers’ groups, serving on the Duchess of Sutherland’s Cripples’ Guild and the Executive Committee of the National Association of Ex-Soldiers. He supported the Boy Scout Movement and founded the Higher Production Council.

Waring received several honours. He was made a Baronet in 1919, of Foots Cray Place in Kent, for “public and local services.” In 1922 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Waring, of Foots Cray Place, for his contributions to decorative art in furnishing and his charitable work. His public appointment during the Lloyd George honours scandal caused controversy, with critics accusing him of war profiteering and reorganising his company to benefit from government contracts while paying shareholders less.

In 1930, Waring stepped down as company chairman and became president, a position he held until his death. He enjoyed sailing and was Commodore of the Royal Albert Yacht Club, owning the yacht White Heather. He was the first president of the Furniture Trades Provident and Benevolent Association.

Waring married Eleanor Caroline Bamford in 1890. They had a son, Arthur Samuel Bamford Waring, who died unmarried at 19 in 1911, and a daughter, Eleanor Gladys Waring, who married Captain Arthur Cunliffe Bernard Critchley. Lord Waring died in London in January 1940 at the age of 79, and his titles became extinct. In 1946, Lady Waring sold Foots Cray Place to Kent County Council.