Pontypridd Urban District Council was a local authority in Glamorgan, Wales. It was created in 1894 as a result of the 1894 Local Government of England and Wales Act. The Council existed until 1973 and replaced the Pontypridd Local Board of Health which had functioned for some years. Its boundaries were set in 1894. Initially, the Council had eighteen members but this number was increased in the 1930s, as a result of the increase in population. There were initially six wards, namely Cilfynydd, Graig, Pontypridd Town, Rhondda, Trallwn and Treforest; a seventh ward, Rhydyfelin, was added in the 1930s.
The first councillors were elected at the December 1894 elections. Most of the first members of the authority had served on the Local Board.
In the years leading up to the First World War, representatives of the Labour Party began to gain ground.
In 1974 the authority was abolished, and together with the former rural district of Llantrisant and Llantwit Fardre, and some outlying areas, formed the Taff Ely Borough Council which, in turn, was subsumed into the unitary authority of Rhondda Cynon Taff in 1996.
Pontypridd Urban District Council, Chairpersons
James F. Roberts, 1895-1898 Patrick Gowan, 1898-1899 R. T. Richards, 1899-1900 Hugh Bramwell, 1900-1901 Hopkin Morgan, 1901-1902 Frederick George Edwards, 1902-1903 William Lewis, 1903-1904 William Howell Gronow, 1904-1905 Edward Williams, 1906-1907 David Evans, 1908-1909 Moses Jones, 1909-1910 David Williams, 1910-1911 D. R. Evans, 1912-1913 Hopkin Morgan, 1914-1915 David Jenkins, 1915-1916 William Phillips, 1917-1918 David Lewis Davies, 1918-1919 Arthur Seaton, 1920-1921 David Williams, 1921-1922 Moses Jones, 1922-1923 Thomas Taylor, 1923-1924 W. J. Davies, 1924-1925 David Lewis Davies, 1925-1926 (Rev) D. G. Hughes, 1927-1928 Dan Evans, 1928-1929 Evan Morgan, 1929-1930 Robert Roper, 1931-1932 Artemus Seymour, 1933-1934 George Paget, 1934-1935 William Jones, 1935-1936 Jack Jones, 1936-1937 Arthur Pearson, 1937-1938 Walter Collier, 1938-1939 F. Morgan Phillips, 1939-1940 Jesse Powderhill, 1940-1941 Evan Morgan, 1941-1942 Edwin Rowbotham, 1942-1943 C. H. James, 1943-1945 Hopkin Smith, 1945-1946 H. Gardner, 1946-1947 George Paget, 1947-1948 David J. Richards, 1948-1949 H. G. Joshua, 1949-1950 Blodwen Randall, 1950-1951 Arthur R. Watkins, 1951-1952 H. G. A. Dark, 1952-1953 Arthur Brown, 1953-1954 John Stallard, 1954-1955 J. R. Clayton, 1955-1956 D. G. Ball, 1956-1957 S. Jones, 1957-1958 Llewellyn Hopkin, 1958-1959 J. Howell Davies, 1959-1960 F. J. C. Warner, 1960-1961 Emrys W. Peck. 1961-1962 A. W. B. Higgins, 1962-1963 Gwladys May Williams, 1963-1964 J. Ll. Williams, 1964-1965 Richard Evans, 1965-1966 Norman J. Randell, 1966-1967 John Davies, 1967-1968 William John Cheesman, 1968-1969 J. C. Anzani, 1969-1970 Reginald Price, 1970-1971 Mary G. Murphy, 1971-1972 G. H. Paget, 1972-1973
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1894 The first election to Pontypridd Urban District Council was held in December 1894. Three councillors were elected in each ward.
(**) indicates previous membership of the Local Board of Health.
After the election, the initial composition of the council was as follows. PartyCouncillorsTotalLiberal1010Conservative55Independent22Labour11
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council by-election, 1895 Although no elections to Pontypridd Urban District council were scheduled for 1895, the first full year of the council's existence, the death of William Williams created a vacancy in the Town Ward. There was no change to the overall composition of the council, following the by-election held on 13 May 1895.
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1896 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1896 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward William Seaton, elected the previous year, stood down after the council resolved that he, rather than another member elected in a by-election during the year, should seek re-election.
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council by-election, 1896 A by-election was held in Cilfynydd at the end of April 1896 to fill the vacancy left by the departure of Thomas Williams.
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1897 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1897 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1898 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1898 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1899 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1899 there were contests in two of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1900 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1900 there were contests in four of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1901 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1901 there were contests in four of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1902 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1902 there were contests in two of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1903 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1903 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council by-election, 1903 A by-election was held in the Town ward in May 1903 to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Arthur Seaton.
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1904 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1904 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1905 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1905 there was a contest in only one of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Note: Jones's potential opponent, H. E. Crane, dropped out of the race before election day.
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1906 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1906 there were contests in three of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1907 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1907 there were contests in four of the six wards.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Pontypridd Urban District council election, 1908 In the Pontypridd Urban District Council election of 1908 there were contests in three of the six wards, most notably in Cilfynydd - the first contested election there since the by-election in 1896.
(*) denotes sitting member
Cilfynydd Ward
Graig Ward
Rhondda Ward
Town Ward
Trallwn Ward
Treforest Ward
Notable members of the Council
Walter Morgan, solicitor Arthur Pearson, Member of Parliament. David Lewis Davies, Member of Parliament
References
Bibliography