The 1894 Rothwell Urban District Council election was held on 15 December 1894. It was the first election of the Rothwell Urban District Council following its creation and the abolishment of the Rothwell Local Board.
Independents, many of them former Rothwell Local Board members, became the largest grouping on the council, with 9 of the 15 seats; followed by Labour candidates with 4 seats; and the Liberal candidates with 2 seats. The new council would convene on the 1 January 1895.[1]
Election result
The polls were open between 8am and 8pm. The returning officer for the Rothwell Urban District Council elections was J. Bouchier Wimbush, who was supported by clerks, J. Killburn, Stephenson, Balme and Barnes, and each wards' presiding officers and poll clerks. The votes were counted in the Mechanics Hall.[1]
| Party | Candidates | Votes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stood | Elected | Gained | Unseated | Net | % of total | % | ±% | No. | |
| Independent | 15 | 9 | - | - | - | 60 | 60.5 | - | 2109 |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | 12 | 4 | - | - | - | 26.7 | 27.8 | - | 968 |
| Liberal | 5 | 2 | - | - | - | 13.3 | 10.2 | - | 356 |
| Invalid | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 0 | 1.5 | - | 54 |
| Total | 3487 | ||||||||
| Turnout: 1510 (79.7%) | |||||||||
| Registered electors: 1895 | |||||||||
Ward results
Carlton
The presiding officer for the Carlton ward was Dyson, with support from poll clerks Butterworth and Grimshaw. Carlton's results were the last to be declared at nearly midnight.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Walter Hargreaves* | 273 | 33.4 | - |
| Independent | Thomas Oliver* | 208 | 25.4 | - |
| Independent | George Armitage* | 171 | 20.9 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | John William Clarkson | 105 | 12.8 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Joseph Holdroyd | 61 | - | |
| Majority | - | - | ||
| Turnout | 358 | 77.8 | ||
| Registered electors | 460 | |||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. * indicates that the candidate was previously a member of the Rothwell Local Board. | ||||
Lofthouse-with-Thorpe
The presiding officer for the Lofthouse-with-Thorpe ward was John Hirst, with support from poll clerk Howe. Lofthouse's results were brought to the Mechanics Hall at 8:40pm.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Thomas Hargreaves* | 195 | 28.7 | - |
| Independent | James Armitage* | 186 | 27.4 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Thomas Maddock | 131 | 19.3 | - |
| Independent | Francis Edward Middleton* | 114 | 16.8 | - |
| Invalid[n. 3] | James Horner | 54 | 7.9 | - |
| Majority | - | - | ||
| Turnout | 268 | 86.5 | ||
| Registered electors | 310 | |||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. * indicates that the candidate was previously a member of the Rothwell Local Board. | ||||
North
The North ward's polling station was the Old Board room on Churchfields. The presiding officer for the North ward was A. Batty, with support from poll clerks Gurney and Pears. The North ward results were first to be decalred at 10pm.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | James Hargreaves* | 152 | 27 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | William Ward Harrison | 108 | 19.1 | - |
| Liberal | Henry Peter Newsom* | 95 | 16.8 | - |
| Independent | Richard Rodley | 71 | 12.6 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Wright Stead | 60 | 10.6 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Joseph Stead* | 52 | 9.2 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Raymond Ellis | 26 | 4.6 | - |
| Majority | - | - | ||
| Turnout | 240 | 73.8 | ||
| Registered electors | 325 | |||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. * indicates that the candidate was previously a member of the Rothwell Local Board. | ||||
South
The South ward's polling station was the National Schools. The presiding officer for the South ward was J.W. Perkins, with support from poll clerks H. Clark and W. Butterfield. The South ward's votes came in soon after the North ward's.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Ben Taylor | 154 | 20.4 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | John Smith | 126 | 16.7 | - |
| Independent | Charles Ward* | 111 | 14.7 | - |
| Independent | John Turner* | 87 | 11.5 | - |
| Liberal | William Sykes* | 86 | 11.4 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Joseph Stead Jr. | 77 | 10.2 | - |
| Independent | William Cawdell | 76 | 10.1 | - |
| Liberal | Thomas Brook | 42 | 5.6 | - |
| Majority | - | - | ||
| Turnout | 334 | 74.2 | ||
| Registered electors | 450 | |||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. * indicates that the candidate was previously a member of the Rothwell Local Board. | ||||
Stourton
The presiding officer for Stourton was A. Marshall, with support from poll clerks R. Nicholson and Hodson. The Stourton ward's results were declared at 11:15pm.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | John Oliver* | 199 | 29.9 | - |
| Independent | Fred Puffett | 153 | 23 | - |
| Liberal | Tom Chapman | 133 | 20 | - |
| Independent | John William Hirst* | 113 | 17 | - |
| Ind. Labour[n. 2] | Eli Taylor | 68 | 10.2 | - |
| Majority | - | - | ||
| Turnout | 310 | 88.6 | ||
| Registered electors | 350 | |||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. * indicates that the candidate was previously a member of the Rothwell Local Board. | ||||
Reaction
Following the vote, there was a large attendance at the Mechanics Hall, where Cllr. James Hargreaves proposed a thanks to the presiding officer, J. Bouchier Wimbush, which was seconded by Raymond Ellis.[1]
The Rothwell Times noted that 9 of the Rothwell Local Board members were elected to the new Rothwell Urban District Council, along with “4 or perhaps 5 ... [L]abour representatives”. Therefore, there was the “prospect of all interests being considered” and the newspaper anticipated “the establishment of whatever is worth keeping, and the gradual addition of such improvements in our social condition as may be considered best for all.”[1]
By-election
In 1895, Lofthouse-with-Thorpe ward councillor Thomas Maddock resigned from the council. A by-election was held on 12th August 1895.[4]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent[6][n. 4] | P.G. Milner | 77 | 34.5 | - |
| Ind. Labour[2][n. 2] | James Horner | 59 | 26.5 | - |
| Unknown | John Ward | 44 | 19.7 | - |
| Unknown | John Denby | 43 | 19.7 | - |
| Majority | 18 | 8 | ||
| Turnout | 224 | 65.1 | ||
| Registered electors | 344 | |||
| Independent gain from Labour | ||||
| Bold indicates the candidate was elected. | ||||
Notes
- ↑ This is not including the subsequent by-election, where Labour lost a seat.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Though the Wakefield Free Press (1894) does not mention the Independent Labour Party, the Labour Party as it is now known was not in existence during this period. Labour candidates have therefore been labelled Ind. Labour, even if this is not entirely accurate either.
- ↑ Horner's candidacy was objected to.
- ↑ Milner's party affiliation is not listed in the Skyrack Courier even though others are, which would suggest he was an independent. The source is also from years later so his party affiliation may have changed.
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 (Rothwell Times, 1894a); results.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 (Wakefield Free Press, 1894); party affiliations.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 (Rothwell Times, 1894b); electorate numbers.
- ↑ (Rothwell Times, 1895a)
- ↑ (Rothwell Times, 1895b)
- ↑ (Skyrack Courier, 1902)
- Rothwell Times (1894a) ‘Rothwell District Council Election’, 21 December. Available at: https://archive.org/details/1894rothwelltimescomplete/page/n53/
- Rothwell Times (1894b) ‘Rothwell Urban District Council Election: Analysis of the Voting’, 28 December. Available at: https://archive.org/details/1894rothwelltimescomplete/page/n55/
- Rothwell Times (1895a) ‘The Lofthouse Vacancy’, 26 July. Available at: https://archive.org/details/1895rothwelltimescomplete/page/n61/
- Rothwell Times (1895b) ‘Rothwell District Council’, 16 August. Available at: https://archive.org/details/1895rothwelltimescomplete/page/n67/
- Skyrack Courier (1902) ‘Rothwell’, 22 March, p. 5.
- Wakefield Free Press (1894) ‘Nominations for Urban and District Councils and Guardians’, 8 December, p. 8.
See also
| Rothwell Urban District Council elections | ||
| 1894 • 1896 • 1897 | ||