Accrington (UK Parliament constituency)

Accrington
Former Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
County Lancashire
19181983
Number of members One
Replaced by Hyndburn
18851918
Number of members One
Type of constituency County constituency
Created from North East Lancashire

Accrington was a parliamentary constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first-past-the-post system of election.

History

The constituency was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 for the 1885 general election. The original county constituency of North East Lancashire was replaced by a borough constituency for the 1918 general election. The constituency was based on the town of Accrington.

From the 1983 general election the constituency was abolished. The successor seat was Hyndburn, named after the local government area including the town of Accrington. 85.5% of the new seat came from the former Accrington constituency.

Boundaries

This constituency was part of the historic county of Lancashire in North West England.

1885–1918

The constituency, officially named North East Lancashire, Accrington Division consisted of the Municipal Borough of Accrington, and the parishes of Altham, Church, Clayton-le-Moors, Hapton, Huncoat, Oswaldtwistle, and Rishton.[1]

Neighbouring constituencies were Blackburn to the south west and Burnley to the north east and Darwen to the north. Accrington also had short boundaries with Clitheroe at both its north and east borders and Rossendale to the south and south east.

1918–1983

The Representation of the People Act 1918 reorganised constituencies throughout Great Britain. Constituencies were defined in terms of the districts created by the Local Government Act 1894.

The Parliamentary Borough of Accrington consisted of the Municipal Borough of Accrington and the Urban Districts of Church, Clayton-le-Moors, Oswaldtwistle, and Rishton. The three parishes of Altham, Hapton and Huncoat passed to the Clitheroe constituency.[2]

The Representation of the People Act 1948 replaced the term "parliamentary borough" with "borough constituency". The Accrington Borough Constituency was defined in the same terms as in the 1918 legislation. However there were boundary changes reflecting local government changes in the 1930s: the Huncoats area rejoined the constituency as the parish had been absorbed by the Borough of Accrington, while an enlargement of the county borough of Blackburn took away part of Rishton.[3] These boundaries were first used in the 1950 general election.

Abolition

In 1974 local government in England and Wales was reorganised. However parliamentary boundaries were not altered until 1983. The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 created new constituencies based on the new districts. A new Hyndburn Borough Constituency was formed. The new seat included the whole of the Accrington constituency with the addition of Altham and Great Harwood.[4]

Members of Parliament

ElectionMemberParty
1885 Frederick William Grafton Liberal
1886 Robert Hodge Conservative
1892 Sir Joseph Francis Leese Liberal
1910 Harold Trevor Baker Liberal
1918 Ernest Gray Conservative
1922 Charles Roden Buxton Labour
1923 John Hugh Edwards Liberal
1929 Tom Snowden Labour
1931 Henry Adam Procter Conservative
1945 Walter Scott-Elliot Labour
1950 Henry Hynd Labour
1966 Arthur Davidson Labour
1983 constituency abolished - see Hyndburn

Elections

Elections in the 1880s

General Election 1885: Accrington[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Frederick William Grafton 5,320 52.4 n/a
Conservative Robert Trotter Hodge 4,842 47.6 n/a
Majority 478 4.8 n/a
Turnout 94.1 n/a
Liberal win (new seat)
General Election 1886: Accrington[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Robert Trotter Hodge 4,971 51.1 +3.5
Liberal Joseph Francis Leese 4,751 48.9 -3.5
Majority 220 2.2 7.0
Turnout 90.0
Conservative gain from Liberal Swing +3.5

Elections in the 1890s

Joseph Leese
General Election 1892: Accrington[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Joseph Francis Leese 6,019 52.4 +3.5
Conservative Robert Trotter Hodge 5,472 47.6 -3.5
Majority 547 4.8 7.0
Turnout 93.4 +3.4
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing +3.5
Accrington by-election, 1893[8][9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Joseph Francis Leese 5,822 51.1
Conservative Robert Trotter Hodge 5,564 48.9
Majority 258 2.2
Turnout 92.1
Liberal hold Swing
General Election 1895: Accrington[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Sir Joseph Francis Leese 6,168 51.4
Conservative William Mitchell 5,828 48.6
Majority 340 2.8
Turnout 93.5
Liberal hold Swing

Elections in the 1900s

General Election 1900: Accrington[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Sir Joseph Francis Leese 6,585 50.6 -0.8
Conservative E E Micholls 5,993 46.1 -2.5
Ind. Labour Party John Hempsall 433 3.3 n/a
Majority 592 4.5 +1.7
Turnout 91.5 -2.0
Liberal hold Swing +0.9
General Election 1906: Accrington[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Sir Joseph Francis Leese 7,209 56.8
Social Democratic Federation David Daniel Irving 4,852 38.3
Independent Labour Servetus Mortimer Holden 619 4.9
Majority 2,357 18.5
Turnout 82.9
Liberal hold Swing

Elections in the 1910s

Harold Baker
General Election January 1910: Accrington[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Harold Trevor Baker 8,968
Conservative Albert Henry Jessel 6,455
Majority 2,513 16.2
Turnout
Liberal hold Swing
General Election December 1910: Accrington[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Harold Trevor Baker 8,129 55.7
Conservative Ernest Gray 6,461 44.3
Majority 1,668 11.4
Turnout 89.5
Liberal hold Swing

General Election 1914/15:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

General Election 14 December 1918: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Unionist 13,808 47.2 +2.9
Liberal Rt Hon. Harold Trevor Baker 8,378 28.6 -27.1
Labour Charles Roden Buxton 6,369 21.7 n/a
National Democratic William Hammond 738 2.5 n/a
Majority 5,430 18.6 30.0
Turnout 69.5 -20.0
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing +15.0

Elections in the 1920s

Charles Buxton
General Election 15 November 1922: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Charles Roden Buxton 16,462 44.3 +22.6
Unionist Ernest Gray 11,408 30.6 -16.6
Liberal Rt Hon. Harold Trevor Baker 9,395 25.1 -3.5
Majority 5,054 13.7 32.3
Turnout 88.7 +19.2
Labour gain from Unionist Swing +19.6
General Election 6 December 1923: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John Hugh Edwards 19,981 54.3 +29.2
Labour Charles Roden Buxton 13,793 45.7 +1.4
Majority 3,188 8.6 22.3
Turnout 86.5 -2.2
Liberal gain from Labour Swing +13.9
General Election 29 October 1924
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Constitutionalist John Hugh Edwards 20,391 52.9
Labour Charles Roden Buxton 18,148 47.1
Majority 2,243 5.8
Turnout 90.1
Constitutionalist hold Swing
General Election 30 May 1929: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tom Snowden 25,336 52.3 +5.2
Liberal John Hugh Edwards 23,110 47.7 -5.2
Majority 2,226 4.6 10.4
Turnout 88.7 -1.4
Labour gain from Liberal Swing +5.2

Elections in the 1930s

General Election 27 October 1931:
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Henry Adam Procter 30,799 62.89
Labour Tom Snowden 18,177 37.11
Majority 12,622 25.77
Turnout 48,976
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General Election 14 November 1935
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Henry Adam Procter 25,273 54.4
Labour Frederick George Burgess 21,203 45.6
Majority 4,070 8.8
Turnout 32,696 67.7
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1939/40:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1939, the following candidates had been selected;

General Election 5 to 19 July 1945: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Walter Scott-Elliot 21,102 48.65
Conservative Henry Adam Procter 16,025 36.95
Liberal Gerald Vernon Mortimer 6,247 14.40
Majority 5,077 11.71
Turnout 83.27
Labour gain from Conservative Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 23 February 1950: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Henry Hynd 23,295 48.82
Conservative Henry Adam Procter 19,022 39.86
Liberal Arthur Kenneth Blakeman 5,403 11.32
Majority 4,273 8.95
Turnout 91.01
Labour hold Swing
General Election 25 October 1951: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Henry Hynd 24,802 52.31
Conservative Francis Henry Gerard Heron Goodhart 22,611 47.69
Majority 2,191 4.62
Turnout 89.96
Labour hold Swing
General Election 26 May 1955: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Henry Hynd 22,502 51.54
Conservative Dennis C Walls 21,157 48.46
Majority 1,345 3.08
Turnout 43,659 85.71
Labour hold Swing
General Election 8 October 1959: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Henry Hynd 22,242 50.68
Conservative Martin Henry 21,642 49.32
Majority 600 1.37
Turnout 43,884
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 15 October 1964: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Henry Hynd 20,561 49.72
Conservative Alexander Victor Edward Paulet Montagu 15,143 36.62
Liberal Terence Anthony Maher 5,653 13.67
Majority 5,418 13.10
Turnout 41,357 84.46
Labour hold Swing
General Election 31 March 1966: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Davidson 21,330 53.04 +3.32
Conservative David L Maxwell 14,508 36.08 -0.54
Liberal Julian H S Gould 4,375 10.88 -2.79
Majority 6,822 16.96 +3.86
Turnout 40,213 83.06 -1.40
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 18 June 1970: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Davidson 20,828 50.72 -2.32
Conservative Dr Reginald C Webster 20,234 49.28 +13.2
Majority 594 1.45 -15.51
Turnout 41,062 80.22
Labour hold Swing
General Election February 1974:
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Davidson 20,050 47.50 -3.22
Conservative Alan d'Arcy Fearn[15] 15,018 35.54 -13.24
Liberal W I Cooper 7,191 17.02 N/A
Majority 5,032 11.91 +10.46
Turnout 42,259 83.85 +3.63
Labour hold Swing 5.2
General Election 10 October 1974: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Davidson 19,838 49.18 +1.7
Conservative J McLaughlin 13,618 33.76 -1.78
Liberal W I Cooper 5,704 14.14 -2.88
National Front David Riley 1,176 2.92 N/A
Majority 6,220 15.42 +3.51
Turnout 40,336 79.37 -4.48
Labour hold Swing
General Election 3 May 1979: Accrington
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Davidson 19,576 48.93 -0.25
Conservative A Cheetham 16,282 40.69 +6.93
Liberal R Holden 3,646 9.11 -5.03
National Front David Riley 508 1.27 -1.65
Majority 3,294 8.23 -7.19
Turnout 40,012 78.73 -0.64
Labour hold Swing

References

  1. Seventh Schedule: Counties at Large, Part I: England, Redistribution of Seats Act, 1885 (C.23)
  2. Ninth Schedule, Part 1(2): Parliamentary Boroughs, England excluding London and Monmouthshire, Representation of the People Act, 1918 (C.64)
  3. F A Youngs Jr., Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol II: Northern England, London, 1991
  4. The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983 No. 417)
  5. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  6. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  7. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  8. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  9. The Constitiutional Year Book, 1904, published by Conservative Central Office, page 147 (171 in web page), Lancashire North East
  10. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  11. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  12. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  13. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  14. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  15. "Alan Fearn". Daily Telegraph. 2 April 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2013.

Sources

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