Rhondda Urban District Council was a local authority in

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, Wales. It was created in 1894 as a result of the

1894 Local Government of England and Wales Act The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

and the 1894 election saw the election of the first members of the authority, initially known as the Ystradyfodwg Urban District Council. The Council existed until 1973 and replaced the Ystradyfodwg Local Board of Health which had functioned since the 1870s. . Initially, the Council had fifteen members but this was increased to twenty in 1906, as a result of the increase in population. There were five wards. The first councillors were elected at the 1894 election. From the outset there was a strong representation on the Council of middle-class nonconformist liberals, who were typical of the new elite who rose to prominence in Wales in the late-Victorian and Edwardian periods. Following the inaugural elections there were comparatively few contests during the next few years. 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 replaced by the Rhondda Borough Council which, in turn, was subsumed into the unitary authority of Rhondda Cynon Taf in 1996.

Notable members of the Council

1896 Rhondda Urban District Council election

This was the second election to the authority, originally known as the Ystradyfodwg Urban District Council. The initial election was held in

1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...

and this election was followed by the 1897 election. All the wards were uncontested. In four wards, members returned at the previous election were unopposed, while in Ward No.3, the Labour member, Ebenezer davies, checkweigher at the

Clydach Vale Clydach Vale ( cy, Cwmclydach and adjoining ''Blaenclydach'') is a village in the Community (Wales), community of Cwm Clydach, northwest of Tonypandy in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the Rhondda Valley, Wales. It is named for it ...

Colliery did not seek re-election. The Rhondda parliamentary constituency was represented by the

Lib-Lab The Liberal–Labour movement refers to the practice of local Liberal associations accepting and supporting candidates who were financially maintained by trade unions. These candidates stood for the British Parliament with the aim of representing ...

MP, William Abraham, and there was significant tension at local level between the official Liberal Association and the trade unions, notably the miners.

Ward Results

Ward No.1

Ward No.2

Ward No.3

Ward No.4

Ward No.5

References

Bibliography

*{{cite journal, last=Parry, first=Jon, title=Labour Leaders and Local Politics 1888-1902: The Example of Aberdare, journal= Welsh History Review, year=1989, volume=14, issue=3, pages=399–416, url=http://welshjournals.llgc.org.uk/browse/viewobject/llgc-id:1080171/article/000016672, accessdate=24 October 2013