Background
John Lister was born in Marylebone, Middlesex to John and Louisa Ann (née Grant) Lister. Lister grew up in Sandown on the Isle of Wight and Halifax in the West Riding of Yorkshire.
John Lister was born in Marylebone, Middlesex to John and Louisa Ann (née Grant) Lister. Lister grew up in Sandown on the Isle of Wight and Halifax in the West Riding of Yorkshire.
He attended Winchester College, then Brasenose College at the University of Oxford and finally Inner Temple, where he qualified as a barrister.
He had two younger siblings named Charles and Anne. They were related to nineteenth century diarist Anne Lister. In 1873, he was elected to Halifax Town Council for the Liberal Party.
In 1882, he founded the Catholic Working Men"s Association.
He joined the Independent Labour Party (ILP) on its formation the following year, becoming its first treasurer. Lister stood for the group at the Halifax by-election, 1893, taking 25% of the votes cast.
He again stood for Halifax at the 1895 general election, but fared less well, and left the ILP and his elected posts in 1895. In his remaining years, Lister focussed on managing his estate and on local history.
Increasingly influenced by Christian socialism, Lister joined the Fabian Society in 1891.