1889 Merionethshire County Council election

The first election to the Merionethshire County Council was held on 18 January 1889.^[1] It was followed by the 1892 election. The county was divided into numerous single member wards with two councillors elected to represent some of the urban areas.

Overview of the result

1889 was a landmark year in the history of Welsh Liberalism, a coming of age symbolized by the triumph across Wales of Liberal candidates in the inaugural county council elections. The outcome was very similar to that in Cardiganshire.

Unopposed Returns

There were some unopposed returns.

Contested Elections

There were a large number of contested elections and the majorities were small in most instances. In most cases there were contests between Liberal and Conservative candidates.

The New Council

The first meeting of the council was held in Dolgellau.

Summary of Results

This section summarises the detailed results which are noted in the following sections. This was the inaugural county election and therefore no comparison can be made with the previous elections. One councillor was described as an Independent candidate but was also grouped in some reports with the Conservatives.

This table summarises the result of the elections in all wards. 42 councillors were elected.

Merionethshire County Council 1889: elected members
Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Liberal	33
	Conservative	8
	Independent	1

This table summarises the position following the election of aldermen. Eight were elected from among the elected members and eight from outside the council. This brought the total number of councillors and aldermen to 56.

Merionethshire County Council 1889 : following election of new aldermen
	Seats	Gains	Net gain/loss
Liberal	43	10	+11
Conservative	9	1	+1
Independent	1		0

This table summarises the position following the by-elections for the three seats vacated following the election of aldermen. Technically these were new seats, taking the total number of councillors to 56. However, the Liberals defended three seats.

Merionethshire County Council 1889 : following by-elections
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss
Liberal	46	3	0	0
Conservative	9	0	0	0
Independent	1

Results

Abercorris and Talyllyn (two seats)

Abercorris and Talyllyn 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	Morris Thomas	226
Liberal	William Caradog Jones	192
Conservative	Edward Williams	169

Aberdovey District

Aberdovey District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	James Webster	95
	Liberal	John Hughes Jones	89
Majority			6

Bala District

Richard Jones was a prominent figure in the public life of Bala, serving on many bodies. He was elected alderman at the first meeting of the Council but died suddenly in February, aged 65.^[2]

Bala District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Richard Jones	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Barmouth Urban District

Lewis Lewis, gentleman, of Hillside, Barmouth, defeated John Robert Davies, gentleman, of Compton House, Barmouth.^[1]

Barmouth Urban District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Lewis Lewis	160
	Conservative	John Robert Davies	109
Majority			51

Conglywal District

Robert Roberts, physician and surgeon, of Isallt, Blaenau Festiniog defeated Joseph Rhydwen Parry, Independent minister, of Manod Road, Blaenau Ffestiniog.^[1]

Conglywal District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Robert Roberts	163
	Liberal	Joseph Rhydwen Parry	129
Majority			34

Cynfal and Teigl District (two seats)

William Davies, farmer, of Caerblaidd, Ffestiniog and John Hughes, farmer, of Hafodfawrisaf, Maentwrog, were elected at the expense of George Henry Ellis, solicitor, of Penymount, Ffestiniog and Edward Henry Jonathan, draper, of Paris House, Four Crosses.^[1]

Dolgelley Combined District 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Conservative	William Davies	159
Liberal	John Hughes	105
Independent	George Henry Ellis	95
Liberal	Edward Henry Jonathan	89

Cwmorthin and Ystradau (two seats)

Cwmorthin and Ystradau 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Alexander Milne Dunlop	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Liberal	William Parry Evans	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Dolgelley Combined District (two seats)

Dolgelley Combined District 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	Edward Jones	300
Liberal	Morris Jones	261
Conservative	John Vaughan	218

Dolgelley Rural District

Dolgelley Rural District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Robert Pugh	111
	Conservative	Richard Edward Lloyd Richards	95
Majority			16

Dyffryn

Dyffryn 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Samuel Pope	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Gwyddelwern

Gwyddelwern 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert Edwards	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Harlech District

Richard Thomas Jones, surgeon, of Penygarth Villa, Harlech defeated John Owen, farmer, of Brynartro, Llanfair.^[1]

Harlech District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Richard Thomas Jones	152
	Conservative	John Owen	141
Majority			11

Llanaber

Charles Williams of Hengwm, Llanaber defeated John Jones, farmer, of Llwyndu, Barmouth.^[1]

Llanaber 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Charles Williams	50
	Liberal	John Jones	28
Majority			22

Llandrillo

Llandrillo 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Davies	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Llandderfel

Llandderfel 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Jones	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Llanegryn

Llanegryn 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	William Robert Maurice Wynne	151
	Liberal	John Evans	104
Majority			48

Llanfachreth

Llanfachreth 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Robert Vaughan	136
	Liberal	Edward Griffith	91
Majority			45

Llanfor

Richard John Price of Rhiwlas defeated William Thomas Rowlands, farmer, of Tanycoed, Llanfor (L).^[1]

Llanaber 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Richard John Price	141
	Liberal	William Thomas Rowlands	64
Majority			77

Llanfrothen

John Jones, gentleman, of Ynysfor, Llanfrothen defeated William Hughes, farmer, of Cwmcaeth, Nantmor, Beddgelert.^[1]

Llanaber 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	John Jones	142
	Liberal	William Hughes	74
Majority			68

Llansantffraid and Corwen Combined Districts (three seats)

William Ffoulkes Jones, timber merchant, of the Terrace, Corwen; Robert David Roberts, wholesale grocer, of Glandwr, Corwen, and Hugh Cernyw Williams, Baptist minister, of London Road, Corwen were elected at the expense of David Robert Jones, surgeon, of the Terrace, Bridge Street, Corwen and Horatio Edward Walker, surgeon, of Plasyndref, Corwen.^[1]

Llansantffraid and Corwen Combined Districts 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	William Ffoulkes Jones	341
Liberal	Robert David Roberts	332
Liberal	Rev Hugh Cernyw Williams	277
Conservative	David Robert Jones	252
Conservative	Horatio Edward Walker	162

Llanuwchllyn District

Llanuwchllyn 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Michael Daniel Jones	125
	Conservative	John Williams	117
Majority			8

Llanycil

Llanycil 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edward Peters	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Llwyngwril

Llwyngwril 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Ellis Pughe-Jones	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Maenofferen and Diphwys Combined District (two seats)

John Parry Jones of the District Bank, Blaenau Ffestiniog and Robert Owen Jones, solicitor, of High Street, Blaenau Ffestiniog were elected at the expense of Morris Jones, flour dealer, of Blaenbowydd House, Blaenau Ffestiniog.^[1]

Maenofferen and Diphwys Combined District 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	John Parry Jones	276
Liberal	Robert Owen Jones	264
Independent	Morris Jones	173

Maentwrog

William Edward Oakeley of Plas Tanybwlch defeated Griffith Ceidiog Roberts, nonconformist minister of Gwyndy, Maentwrog.^[1] In what was described as the first Liberal meeting held at Maentwrog, in support of Roberts's candidature, Tom Ellis MP spoke for over an hour and a half.^[3]

Maentwrog 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	William Edward Oakeley	134
	Liberal	Griffith Ceidiog Roberts	83
Majority			51

Mawddwy District

Mawddwy 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	John Jones	141
	Conservative	Henry Owen	105
Majority			36

Pennal

Pennal 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Meredith	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Penrhyn and Talsarnau (two seats)

J. B. Jones, miller, of Brynyfelin and John Rowe, quarry manager, of Glasfryn View, Penrhyn, were elected at the expense of Edmund Morgan Roberts, farmer, of Cefntrefor- isaf, Talsarnau and John Morgan, grocer, of Canton House, High Street, Blaenau Ffestiniog.^[1]

Penrhyn and Talsarnau 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	J. B. Jones	223
Liberal	John Rowe	219
Conservative	Edmund Morgan Roberts	207
Liberal	John Morgan	72

Rhiw and Bowydd (two seats)

Rhiw and Bowydd 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	David Griffith Williams	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Liberal	David Griffith Jones	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Towyn Rural District

Towyn Rural District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Rev Griffith Evans	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Towyn Urban District

Towyn Urban District 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Haydn Jones	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Trawsfynydd Eastern and Western Districts (two seats)

John Humphreys, physician and surgeon, of Fronwynion-street, Trawsfynydd and Robert Hugh Pughe, farmer, of Brynllefrith, Trawsfynydd, were elected at the expense of David Tegid Jones, farmer, of Y Goppa and William Evans, draper, of Meirion House, Trawsfynydd.^[1]

Trawsfynydd Eastern and Western Districts 1889
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	John Humphreys	162
Independent	Robert Hugh Pughe	109
Liberal	David Tegid Jones	107
Liberal	William Evans	81

Election of Aldermen

In addition to the 42 councillors the council consisted of 14 county aldermen. Aldermen were elected by the council, and served a six-year term. Following the election of the initial sixteen aldermen, half of the aldermanic bench would be elected every three years following the triennial council election. After the initial elections, there were sixteen Aldermanic vacancies and the following Alderman were appointed by the newly elected council:^[4]

Only three of those elected were members of the council.^[5]

Elected for six years

S. Pope, Liberal, (elected councillor at )
A. O. Williams, Liberal
J. Cadwaltwdr, Liberal
Edward Griffith, Liberal (defeated candidate at Llanfachreth)
Richard Jones, Plasyracre, Liberal (elected councillor at Bala)
Wm. Williams, Liberal
J. Hughes Jones, Liberal

Elected for three years

C. H. Wynn, Conservative
John Evans, Liberal
E. H. Jonathan, Liberal
Andreas Roberts. Liberal
Edward Peters, Liberal (elected councillor at Llanycil)
Rev G. Ceidiog Roberts, Liberal (defeated candidate at Maentwrog)
William Davies, Pant, Liberal

Aldermanic Vacancies 1889-1895

Richard Jones died suddenly in February 1889, creating an immediate vacancy.^[2]

Therefore, the following appointment was made for the remaining six years in May 1892.

By-elections

Three by-elections were caused by the election of aldermen.

Bala by-election

Edward Watkin, land agent, Rhiwlas, standing as an Independent, defeated the Liberal candidate by fifteen votes. Richard Jones, who had been elected alderman, died three days later.^[2]

Bala by-election 1889
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Independent	Edward Watkin	147
	Liberal	Evan Jones	132
Majority			15

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m "Merioneth County Council Elections". Cambrian News. 25 January 1889. p. 8. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Bala. County Council". Cambrian News. 22 February 1889. p. 7. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
^ "Senedd Meirion". Baner ac Amserau Cymru. Thomas Gee. 2 January 1889. p. 11. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
^ "Merioneth County Council". Cambrian News. 8 February 1889. p. 7. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
^ "Merioneth County Council". Cambrian News. 1 February 1889. p. 5. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

Bibliography

Morgan, Kenneth O. (1967). "Cardiganshire Politics: The Liberal Ascendancy 1885-1923". Ceredigion. 5 (4): 311–346.

[CN_25-1-89_Mer_CC_results-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m "Merioneth County Council Elections". Cambrian News. 25 January 1889. p. 8. Retrieved 8 July 2015.

[CN_22-2-89_Bala_by-el-2] "Bala. County Council". Cambrian News. 22 February 1889. p. 7. Retrieved 15 July 2015.

[BAC_2-1-89_TE_meetings-3] "Senedd Meirion". Baner ac Amserau Cymru. Thomas Gee. 2 January 1889. p. 11. Retrieved 10 July 2015.

[4] "Merioneth County Council". Cambrian News. 8 February 1889. p. 7. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

[5] "Merioneth County Council". Cambrian News. 1 February 1889. p. 5. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

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