1910–1914 Aberdare Urban District Council elections

The Aberdare Urban District Council was established in 1894 and covered the parish of Aberdare. Its responsibilities included public health, sanitation, roads and public works generally.

There were five wards, namely Aberaman (also known as No. 5 Ward), Blaengwawr (also known as No. 4 Ward), Gadlys (also known as No. 2 Ward), Llwydcoed (also known as No. 1 Ward), and the Town Ward (also known as No. 3 Ward). Originally, one member was elected from each ward on an annual basis, but from 1904 an additional member was granted to each ward, resulting in the election of ten members, out of a total of twenty, every three years. At the intervening election, one member continued to be elected.

In 1914, on the eve of the Great War, elections took place for an additional seven seats on the council, taking the total membership of the council to 27.^[1] No further elections were held until 1919

1910 Aberdare Urban District Council election

An election was held in April 1910.^[2] It was preceded by the 1909 election and followed by the 1911 election. The term of office of members elected at the 1907 election came to an end and those elected were to serve until 1913.

(*) denotes sitting member

Aberaman Ward (two seats)

Aberaman Ward 1910
	Candidate	Votes
	Edmund Mills Hann*	1,226
Labour	Illtyd Hopkins*	1,022
Labour	Joseph Wigley	644

Blaengwawr Ward (two seats)

Blaengwawr Ward 1910
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Davies*	unopposed
	Labour	E. Stonelake*	unopposed

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1910
	Candidate	Votes
	Thomas Lewis*	852
	Henry Evans	812
Labour	Idwal Thomas	597
Ind. Labour Party	Evan Parker	345

Llwydcoed Ward (two seats)

Llwydcoed Ward 1910
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		T. Walter Williams*	1,155
		Rees Llewellyn*	1,034
		W.T. Harries	244

Town Ward (two seats)

Town Ward 1910
	Candidate	Votes
	A.P. Jones	1,109
	David Price Davies*	986
Labour	W.T. James	414

1911 Aberdare Urban District Council election

An election was held in April 1911. The retiring members had been elected in 1908. There were contested elections in two of the five wards.^[3]

Aberaman Ward

Aberaman Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Davies*	Unopposed
			Swing

Blaengwawr Ward

Blaengwawr Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Howell	790
	Labour	Tom Bowen*	592

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1911
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	George Powell	747
Labour	Idwal Thomas	642
		Swing

Llwydcoed Ward

Llwydcoed Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		M.J. Harries*	Unopposed

Town Ward

Town Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Lewis Noah Williams*	Unopposed
			Swing

1912 Aberdare Urban District Council election

Three of the five wards were contested with Labour retaining two seats and the Independents one.^[4]

Aberaman Ward

Aberaman Ward 1912
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Rees*	unopposed

Blaengwawr Ward

Blaengwawr Ward 1912
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. Jackson Thomas*	unopposed

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1912
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Idwal Thomas	709
		James H. James*	537

Llwydcoed Ward

Llwydcoed Ward 1912
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		J.O. George	Unopposed

Town Ward

Town Ward 1912
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		W. Thomas*	Unopposed

1913 Aberdare Urban District Council election

An election was held on 7 April 1913.^[5] In Gadlys, Thomas Lewis, recenly elected unopposed to Glamorgan County Council, lost his seat to Labour after Edmund Stonelake, who previously represeneted Blaengwawr, switched wards. Lewis's defeat was attributed not only to a feeling that he could not effectively serve as a county and district councillor but also the fact that he was estranged from many of his fellow members at Ebenezer chapel, who refused to support him.^[5]

Aberaman Ward (two seats)

Aberaman Ward 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Edmund Mills Hann*	1,333
Labour	Illtyd Hopkins*	550
Liberal	Philip Rees	464
Labour	J.T. Norman	435
Conservative	Henry Davies	427

Blaengwawr Ward (two seats)

Blaengwawr Ward 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	Evan Jones	822
Labour	David Davies*	632
Labour	D.E. Davies	630

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	E. Ogwen Williams	709
Labour	Edmund Stonelake*	649
Liberal	Thomas Lewis*	584

Llwydcoed Ward (two seats)

Llwydcoed Ward 1913
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	T. Walter Williams*	Unopposed
	Independent	Rees Llewellyn*	Unopposed

Town Ward (two seats)

Town Ward 1913
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	A.P. Jones*	Unopposed
	Independent	David Price Davies*	Unopposed

1914 Aberdare Urban District Council election

An election was held in April 1914. The retiring members had been elected in 1908. There were contested elections in two of the five wards.^[3]

Aberaman Ward

Aberaman Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Davies*	Unopposed
			Swing

Blaengwawr Ward

Blaengwawr Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Howell	790
	Labour	Tom Bowen*	592

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1911
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	George Powell	747
Labour	Idwal Thomas	642
		Swing

Llwydcoed Ward

Llwydcoed Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		M.J. Harries*	Unopposed

Town Ward

Town Ward 1911
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Lewis Noah Williams*	Unopposed
			Swing

1914 Aberdare Urban District Council by-elections

Elections for seven additional members; three in the Aberaman Ward and one in each of the other four wards, were held a few days before the outbreak of the Great War.^[6]

Aberaman Ward

Aberaman Ward 1914 by-election (three seats)
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Joseph Martin	1,260
Labour	Evan Jones	961
Labour	John Evans	700
Independent	Henry Williams	655
Labour	John Davies	630

Blaengwawr Ward

Blaengwawr Ward 1914 by-election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	W.R. Morgan	784
	Labour	W. Lawrence	438

Gadlys Ward

Gadlys Ward 1914 by-election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	T.W. Griffiths	718
	Labour	Enoch Jones	555

Llwydcoed Ward

Llwydcoed Ward 1914
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Griffiths	626
	Liberal	Thomas Lewis	531

Town Ward

Town Ward 1914 by-election
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	William Haggar	438
Independent	Richard Morgan	364
Labour	J.H. Bruton	258
Independent	Mrs Richards	207

References

^ "Aberdare District Council Elections. Every Ward to be Contested". Aberdare Leader. 18 July 1914. p. 6. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
^ "Aberdare District Council". Aberdare Leader. 9 April 1910. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
^ ^a ^b "The Elections". Aberdare Leader. 1 April 1911. p. 6. Retrieved 20 February 2025.
^ "District Council Elections. Aberdare Contests". Aberdare Leader. 6 April 1912. p. 4. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
^ ^a ^b "Aberdare District Council. Labour Gain and Lose a Seat". Aberdare Leader. 12 April 1913. p. 3. Retrieved 14 March 2025.
^ "Aberdare District Council Elections". Aberdare Leader. 1 August 1914. p. 2. Retrieved 11 April 2025.

Bibliography

Jones, Ieuan Gwynedd (1981). Explorations & Explanations. Essays in the Social History of Victorian Wales. Llandysul: Gomer. ISBN 0 85088 644 9.
Jones, Ieuan Gwynedd (1987). Communities. Essays in the Social History of Victorian Wales. Llandysul: Gomer. ISBN 0 86383 223 7.
Morgan, Kenneth O (1991). Wales in British Politics 1868-1922. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 0708311245.
Parry, Jon (1989). "Labour Leaders and Local Politics 1888-1902: The Example of Aberdare". Welsh History Review. 14 (3): 399–416. Retrieved 24 October 2013.

[AL_18-7-14_nom-1] "Aberdare District Council Elections. Every Ward to be Contested". Aberdare Leader. 18 July 1914. p. 6. Retrieved 9 April 2025.

[AL_9-4-10_AUDC-2] "Aberdare District Council". Aberdare Leader. 9 April 1910. Retrieved 14 July 2014.

[AL_1-4-11_UDC_res-3] "The Elections". Aberdare Leader. 1 April 1911. p. 6. Retrieved 20 February 2025.

[AL_6-4-12-4] "District Council Elections. Aberdare Contests". Aberdare Leader. 6 April 1912. p. 4. Retrieved 6 March 2025.

[AL_12-4-13_AUDC-5] "Aberdare District Council. Labour Gain and Lose a Seat". Aberdare Leader. 12 April 1913. p. 3. Retrieved 14 March 2025.

[AL_1-8-14-6] "Aberdare District Council Elections". Aberdare Leader. 1 August 1914. p. 2. Retrieved 11 April 2025.

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v t e Council elections in the administrative county of Glamorgan
Glamorgan County Council	1889 1892 1895 1898 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1970 Abolished
Aberdare Urban District Council	1894 1896 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910
Neath Rural District Council	1894 1898 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1946 1949 Abolished
Mountain Ash Urban District	1894 1896 1898 1899 1908
Ogmore and Garw Urban District Council	1894 Abolished
Pontypridd Urban District Council	1894 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 Abolished
Rhondda Urban District Council	1894 1896 Abolished