Durham E-Theses Politic and party organisation in Oldham Bickerstae, Derek How to cite: Bickerstae, Derek (1964) Politic and party organisation in Oldham, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/9701/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk POLITICS AND PARTY ORGANISATION IN OLDHAM 1852 - 1914 DEREK BICKERSTAPPE DISSERTATION PRESENTED FOR THE DEGREE OP MASTER OP ARTS The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without his prior written consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged. JANUARY 1964 In one sense all politics are provincial politicso What Peely Melbourne and Russell could do in the Houses of Parliament depended primarily on what happened in the constituencies. It is true that provincial politics were not immune from central influence» it is equally true that national politics were given their peculiar colour and flavour largely by provincial representatives and provincial interests and opinion. ( Norman Gash. Politics in the Age of Peel Longmans, 1955» p.270) CONTENTS NOTES ON SOURCES INTRODUCTION 1 - CHAPTER 1 RADICAL OLDHAM 1852-47 (a) Oldham Radicals 1852 6-11 (t) Oldham's First Election 1852 12 - 50 (c) The Ranks Divided 51 - 64 CHAPTER 2 THE GROWTH OF THE LIBERAL AND CONSERVATIVE PARTIES 1847-6? (a) The collapse of old radicalism 65 - 77 (b) The Development of Party Organisation 1847-65 78-86 (c) Confusion in Politics I846-65 87 - II5 CHAPTER 5 POLITICS I867 - 1910 (a) The Swing of the Pendulum 116 - 224 (b) Party Organisation I867 - 1910 225 - 24I CHAPTER 4 THE LABOUR PARTY (a) Trade Unions and Industrial Discontent 242 - 255 (b) The Labour Party and its Early Difficulties . 256 - 266 (c) The 1911 Election 267 - 278 CONCLUSION 279 - 281 NOTES OH SOURCES. 1. Edwin Butterworth was born on 1st October, 1812, and died on 19th April, I848. His father was James Butterworth the Oldham Postmaster. He began writing in 1829 when he published a Biography of Eminent Natives, Residents and Benefactors of the Town of Manchester, followed by a History of Oldham published in 1832. He won fame for the researches he undertook for Edward Baines' History of Lancashire published in 1831 and it was largely as a result of Baines' recommendation that he was appointed Registrar of births, marriages and deaths i,n Oldham. In 1^ 0 he began a series of notebooks in which he recorded the principal events in Oldham until 1842. It is these notebooks which provide invaluable material for the 1830's. The notebooks themselves are rough, home made volumes with '' unnumbered pages and largely undated entries. This makes precise reference difficult. 2. The Oldham Chronicle was first published on 6th May, 1834, and was intended as a rival to the Manchester Guardian and Manchester Courie^ which had a wide distribution in Oldham. It was published weekly at first and then bi• weekly in 1877. The Oldham Evening Chronicle was brought out in March 1880. From the outset it was strongly Liberal in character . It continues today as the only existing local newspaper. 3. The Oldham Standard began publication in August 1859 as a Conservative counterblast to the Liberal Chronicle. It vas renamed the Oldham Daily Standard in July 1885 and ceased publication in July 1947* Oldhoni from Giodvyick^ -1- INTRODUCTION. Oldham.is situated eight miles to the north-east of Manchester on the main routes to the West Riding of Yorkshire. To the north, west and south of the town lie the townships of Shaw (Crompton), Royton, Chadderton, Hollinwood and Ashton-under-Lyiie, whilst to the east lies the open moorland of the Pennines. The population of Oldham in 1831 was 32,381 but including Shaw, Royton, Chadderton and Hollinwood, the figure was 30,513. These figures represent a 49^ increase over the 1821 census figures. The bulk of this population was engaged in the cotton industry which thrived in the damp atmosphere of the district. Alderman James Middleton, Mayor of Oldham I9I6 - 17» has written.! "It has been established, that in this distri.ct 3^ more yarn can be obtained from a given quantity,.of.raw cotton than in any drier atmosphere."^ The growth of the cotton industry, the introduction of machinery and the consequent development of the factory system gave rise 2 to-the "Jenny Gentry" and a new operative class, torn from its roots providing fruitful ground for new political ideas during the 1830's and 1840's.. Textile engineering was also established at the end of the eighteenth century in small shops making tsxtile machinery which had not been 1. H. Bateson A- Centenary History of Oldham County Borough Council 1949» 2. E. Butterworth Oldham Notes* MSS. -2- effectively patented by the inventors. The most important single enterprise was that of Piatt and Hibbert, a partnership formed in I824. Henry Flatt began making simple wooden machinery in 1821 at Garnett's Shop, Side- of-Moor. At about the same time Elijah Hibbert of Ashton- under-Lyne opened an iron and brass foundry at Soho, Greenacres Moor. Finding himself in financial difficulties Piatt approached Eibbert for a loan and the partnership was formed. In 1828 the firm moved to larger premises at Mount Pleasant and soon after to its permanent home at the Hartford Works. From 500 employees in I845 the firm rose to 14fOOO in 1897i owned extensive collieries in the neighbour• hood and rapidly won for itself a world wide reputation in the manufacture of textile machinery. This was the largest single firm in the neighbourhood and it had a great influence on the social and political life of the community. Hatting also flourished in Oldham at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Fine grade piled hats of wool or fur were made^ until the advent of silk hats in the 1850*8 killed the industry. Coal mining developed to keep pace with expanding industry. From fourteen in I8O7 the number of collieries rose to thirty seven in I85I and fifty five in 1858. The great coalmasters of Oldham were John Evans and William Jones, later joined by John and Joseph Lees, who apart frpm spme small collieries and those owned by Piatt's, controlled the whole coal supply of the 1. It is suggested that this is where the local name for Oldhamers, "Rough-heads", originates. , -3- district. Oldham did not have railway communication with Manchester until 1842 when the Manchester to Leeds Railway, later called the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was built. Before this, passenger links with Manchester were by stage coach, whilst heavy goods came from Manchester to Hollinwood by way of the Oldham Canal. Local government from 1826 was in the hands of Improvement Commissioners, more commonly known as the Police Commissioners. They were a non-elected body composed of property owners or professional men who either received £30 per annum from property or paid a rent of £30 per annum. By I848 they numbered 36O members who met regularly in either the Albion Inn or the Grammar School. This was not convenient since on many occasions the meetings of the Commissioners clashed with other meetings, so in I84O a Town Hall was built. The Commission ers were able to levy rates up to 2/6d. in the pound. They were responsible for sanitation, the repair of highways and the provisions of street lighting. As their name implied they controlled the police force, which was supplemented by special constables and the militia as the occasion demanded, and they also administered the fire brigade. The Commissioners however were not very efficient and throughout the 1830's and 1840's there was frequent criticism of the way in which they ran the town. In particular the inadequacy of the police force in the face of Chartist threats was attacked. In I848 consequently the Commissioners disappeared, the town -4- received its Charter of Incorporation and local government came under the control of a mayor and an elected corporation. Oldham did not have direct parliamentary represent• ation until the 1852 Reform Act. The justice of giving representation to Oldham was undeniable. At a public meeting at the Grammar School called to petition for ^ reform of the House of Commons, on 9th February, 1851 William Crompton, one of the head constables, claimed that Oldham was the eighth unrepresented town in order of population and that its population equalled those of thirty eight of the smallest boroughs then represented in parliament. Oldham however was not included in the first Reform Bill introduced in March I85I. Deputations were sent from Oldham and the outlying districts and Oldham was included in the second Reform Bill under Schedule D with one member. Following the arrival of boundary commissioners in November 1851. Oldham was given two members and the parliamentary borough was enlarged to include Shaw, Royton, Chadderton and Hollinwood. Writing of the people of Oldham in the 1850's - the Earl of Ellesmere wrote: " They are more indebted to art and industry than to nature, and they supply by that industry what nature has denied them.