Westhoughton (UK Parliament constituency)

Westhoughton was a parliamentary constituency in Lancashire, England. Centred on the former mining and cotton town of Westhoughton, it returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Westhoughton
Former county constituency for the House of Commons
County	Lancashire (until 1974) Greater Manchester (from 1974)
1885–1983
Seats	One
Created from	South East Lancashire
Replaced by	Bolton West Wigan Leigh Chorley

The constituency was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election.

History and boundaries

Westhoughton in Lancashire, boundaries used 1950-83

1885–1918

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 divided the existing constituency of South East Lancashire into eight single-member seats. The new seat of South-East Lancashire, Westhoughton Division comprised an area surrounding, but not including, the County Borough of Bolton.^[1] It consisted of the towns of Aspull, Blackrod, Horwich, Little Lever, and Westhoughton, and the surrounding townships of Anglezarke, Bradshaw, Breightmet, Darcy Lever, Edgworth, Entwistle, Great Lever, Harwood, Heaton, Longworth, Lostock, Middle Hulton, Over Hulton, Quarlton and Rivington, plus Turton Urban District, and the parts of Rumworth, Sharples and Tonge with Haulgh outside the Parliamentary Borough of Bolton.^[2][3][4]

1918–1950

The Representation of the People Act 1918 reorganised parliamentary seats throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Constituencies were redefined in terms of the urban and rural districts created by the Local Government Act 1894. Lancashire, Westhoughton Division consisted of five adjoining urban districts: Aspull, Blackrod, Hindley, Horwich and Westhoughton.^[3][5][6]

1950–1983

The next redrawing of English constituencies was effected by the Representation of the People Act 1948. The Act introduced the term "county constituency". Westhoughton County Constituency was enlarged by the addition of Standish with Langtree Urban District and Wigan Rural District.^[3][7] The revised boundaries were first used at the 1950 general election, and were unchanged until abolition.^[8]

Abolition

The 1983 redistribution of seats reflected local government reforms made in 1974. The bulk of the seat became part of the parliamentary county of Greater Manchester: Blackrod, Horwich and Westhoughton formed part of the new Bolton West county constituency, Aspull and Standish part of Wigan borough constituency and Hindley was included in Leigh borough constituency. Some parishes in the north of the old constituency remained in Lancashire, and were included in Chorley county constituency.^[9]

Members of Parliament

Election		Member[10]	Party
	1885	Frank Hardcastle	Conservative
	1892	Edward Stanley	Conservative
	1906	William Wilson	Labour
	1921 by-election	Rhys Davies	Labour
	1951 by-election	Tom Price	Labour
	1973 by-election	Roger Stott	Labour
1983		constituency abolished

Election results

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Frank Hardcastle	6,011	61.6
	Liberal	Edward Cross[12]	3,741	38.4
Majority			2,270	23.2
Turnout			9,752	91.8
Registered electors			10,625
	Conservative win (new seat)

General election 1886: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Frank Hardcastle	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Edward Stanley	6,711	57.9	N/A
	Liberal	Lewis Haslam	4,871	42.1	New
Majority			1,840	15.8	N/A
Turnout			11,582	89.2	N/A
Registered electors			12,979
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1895: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Edward Stanley	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Edward Stanley	7,989	61.7	N/A
	Liberal	Franklin Thomasson	4,949	38.3	New
Majority			3,040	23.4	N/A
Turnout			12,938	81.7	N/A
Registered electors			15,827
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

By-election, 1903: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Edward Stanley	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

General election 1906: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Repr. Cmte.	William Wilson	9,262	60.2	New
	Conservative	Edward Stanley	6,134	39.8	−21.9
Majority			3,128	20.4	N/A
Turnout			15,396	85.6	+3.9
Registered electors			17,984
	Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Wilson	10,141	56.8	−3.4
	Conservative	H. M. Byrne	7,709	43.2	+3.4
Majority			2,432	13.6	−6.8
Turnout			17,850	90.4	+4.8
Registered electors			19,751
	Labour hold		Swing	−3.4

General election December 1910: Westhoughton^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Wilson	9,064	53.2	−3.6
	Conservative	G. F. Clarke	7,974	46.8	+3.6
Majority			1,090	6.4	−7.2
Turnout			17,038	86.3	−4.1
Registered electors			19,751
	Labour hold		Swing	−3.6

General election 1918: Westhoughton^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Wilson	11,849	63.9	+10.7
	Independent Liberal	James Tonge	6,697	36.1	New
Majority			5,152	27.8	+21.4
Turnout			18,546	61.6	−24.7
Registered electors			30,108
	Labour hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1920s

1921 Westhoughton by-election^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	14,876	57.8	−6.1
	Liberal	James Tonge	10,867	42.2	+6.1
Majority			4,009	15.6	−12.2
Turnout			25,743	84.7	+23.1
Registered electors			30,409
	Labour hold		Swing	−6.1

• Endorsed by the Coalition Government

General election 1922: Westhoughton^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	14,846	55.4	−8.5
	National Liberal	James Tonge	11,937	44.6	+8.5
Majority			2,909	10.8	−17.0
Turnout			26,783	85.4	+23.8
Registered electors			31,351
	Labour hold		Swing	−8.5

General election 1923: Westhoughton^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	15,347	60.3	+4.9
	Unionist	John Haslam	10,103	39.7	New
Majority			5,244	20.6	+9.8
Turnout			25,450	79.3	−6.1
Registered electors			32,081
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.9

General election 1924: Westhoughton^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	16,033	55.8	−4.5
	Unionist	John Haslam	12,684	44.2	+4.5
Majority			3,349	11.6	−9.0
Turnout			28,717	88.8	+8.8
Registered electors			32,587
	Labour hold		Swing	−4.5

General election 1929: Westhoughton^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	22,305	61.5	+5.7
	Unionist	James Wain Lomax	9,855	27.2	−17.0
	Liberal	Ernest Everett Canney	4,132	11.4	New
Majority			12,450	34.3	+22.7
Turnout			36,292	87.1	−1.7
Registered electors			41,648
	Labour hold		Swing	+11.3

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Westhoughton ^[15]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	19,301	53.46
	Conservative	P. Higson	16,801	46.54
Majority			2,500	6.92
Turnout			36,102	85.49
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1935: Westhoughton ^[16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	21,093	60.36
	Conservative	H. O. Dixon	13,851	39.64
Majority			7,242	20.72
Turnout			34,944	83.24
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Westhoughton ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	20,990	64.91
	Conservative	Stanley Bell	11,346	35.09
Majority			9,644	29.82
Turnout			32,336	77.44
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Westhougton ^[18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rhys Davies	30,117	62.26
	Conservative	F. Joan Crowther	18,259	37.74
Majority			11,858	24.52
Turnout			48,376	88.30
	Labour hold		Swing

1951 Westhoughton by-election^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	25,368	60.4	−1.9
	Conservative	Frank J. Land	16,614	39.6	+1.9
Majority			8,754	20.8	−3.7
Turnout			41,982
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1951: Westhoughton ^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	29,319	61.13
	Conservative	Frank J. Land	18,644	38.87
Majority			10,675	22.26
Turnout			47,963	86.6
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1955: Westhoughton ^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	27,900	60.99
	Conservative	Eric Dunnett	17,848	39.01
Majority			10,052	21.98
Turnout			45,748	82.95
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1959: Westhoughton ^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	29,359	61.17
	Conservative	John Edward Gouldbourn	18,634	38.83
Majority			10,725	22.34
Turnout			47,993	84.28
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Westhoughton ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	30,249	61.75
	Conservative	John I. Hanrahan	18,738	38.25
Majority			11,511	23.50
Turnout			48,987	81.92
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1966: Westhoughton ^[24]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	31,387	64.96
	Conservative	John I. Hanrahan	16,927	35.04
Majority			14,460	29.92
Turnout			48,314	78.75
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Westhoughton ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tom Price	29,674	55.4	−9.6
	Conservative	Cyril A. Unsworth	23,847	44.6	+9.6
Majority			5,827	10.9	−19.0
Turnout			53,521	76.9	−1.8
	Labour hold		Swing

1973 Westhoughton by-election^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Stott	26,294	57.0	+1.6
	Conservative	Cyril A. Unsworth	19,511	42.3	−2.3
	Democratic Socialist	Brian O'Hara	335	0.7	New
Majority			6,783	14.7	+3.8
Turnout			46,140
	Labour hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Westhoughton ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Stott	30,574	51.5	−5.5
	Conservative	Brian H. Tetlow	17,909	30.1	−12.2
	Liberal	R. S. Hale	10,939	18.4	New
Majority			12,665	21.3	+6.6
Turnout			59,422	83.2
	Labour hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Westhoughton ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Stott	30,373	54.1	+2.6
	Conservative	Brian H. Tetlow	16,798	29.9	−0.2
	Liberal	R. S. Hale	8,926	15.9	−2.5
Majority			13,575	24.2	+2.9
Turnout			56,097	77.9	−5.3
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1979: Westhoughton ^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Stott	29,685	48.2	−5.9
	Conservative	Carolyn Johnson	24,398	39.6	+9.7
	Liberal	J. Pigott	7,544	12.2	−3.7
Majority			5,287	8.6	−15.6
Turnout			61,627	80.1	+2.2
	Labour hold		Swing

References

1. Boundary Commissioners for England and Wales (1885). "South East Lancashire, New Divisions of County (Map)". Report of the Boundary Commissioners for England and Wales. londonancestor.com. Retrieved 28 September 2008.
2. Seventh Schedule, Counties At Large, Number Of Members And Names And Contents Of Divisions, Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (C.23)
3. F A Youngs Jr., Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol.II: Northern England, London 1991
4. Great Britain Historical GIS Project. "Boundary Map of South East Lancashire Westhoughton PDivCon". A Vision of Britain through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
5. Ninth Schedule: Redistribution of Seats, Representation of the People Act 1918 (C.5)
6. Great Britain Historical GIS Project. "Boundary Map of Lancashire Westhoughton PDivCon". A Vision of Britain through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
7. First Schedule, Parliamentary Constituencies, Representation of the People Act 1948 (C.65)
8. Great Britain Historical GIS Project. "Boundary Map of Westhoughton CCon". A Vision of Britain through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
9. The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983 No.417)
10. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "W" (part 2)
11. Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.
12. "The General Election". Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser. 20 November 1885. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 14 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
13. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
14. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1922
15. General Election, 27 October 1931: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
16. General Election, 14 November 1935: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
17. General Election, 5 July 1945: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
18. General Election, 23 February 1950: Westhougton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
19. By-election 1951: Westhoughton. British Election Ephemera Archive. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
20. General Election 25 October 1951: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
21. General Election, 26 May 1955: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
22. General Election, 8 October 1959: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
23. General Election, 15 October 1964: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
24. General Election, 31 March 1966: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
25. General Election, 18 June 1970: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
26. By-election 1960: Westhoughton. British Election Ephemera Archive. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
27. General Election, 28 February 1974: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
28. General Election, 10 October 1974: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
29. General Election, 3 May 1979: Westhoughton. Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 May 2010.

53°36′N 2°38′W