John Stephenson (MP died 1794) explained

John Stephenson (c. 1709  - 17 April 1794) was a British Member of Parliament.

He was the son and heir of Thomas Stephenson of Bails and Crosslands, Alston, Cumbria and a Member of Parliament for various boroughs in the south-west from 1754 to 1755 and 1761 until his death in 1794. ^[1]

He was a director of the British East India Company from 1765 to 1768, and had government victualling contracts in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland at the time of the American Revolution.^[2]

References

1. Web site: STEPHENSON, John (1710-94), of Brentford Butts, Mdx.. History of Parliament Online. 14 February 2018.
2. Social Structure and Political Behavior in Revolutionary America: John Day's Remarks on American Affairs . Jack P. . Greene . . 3rd Ser. . 32 . July 1975 . 487 . 3 . 10.2307/1922136 . 1922136.