William Henry Carr (1855 – 27 October 1953) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

trade unionist A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...

and political activist. Born in the East End of London, Carr grew up in

Bacup Bacup ( , ) is a town in the Rossendale Borough in Lancashire, England, in the South Pennines close to Lancashire's boundaries with West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester. The town is in the Rossendale Valley and the upper Irwell Valley, east of ...

where he began working in a mill at the age of eleven. He then moved to work as a grinder at a mill in Stalybridge, and became involved in trade unionism."Obituary: Mr William Henry Carr", '' Manchester Guardian'', 27 October 1953, p.14 In 1888, Carr was elected as the secretary of the

South East Lancashire Provincial Card and Blowing Room Operatives' Association The South East Lancashire Provincial Card and Blowing Room Operatives' Association was a trade union representing cotton industry workers in Ashton-under-Lyne and surrounding areas of Lancashire in England. In 1865, the United Central Associatio ...

. He was also appointed as a magistrate for

Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 45,198 at the 2011 census. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, in the foothills of the Pennines, east of Manche ...

, and was active in the Labour Party. His union, the

Cardroom Amalgamation The Cardroom Amalgamation or Cardroom Workers' Amalgamation (CWA)Joseph L. White, ''The Limits of Trade Union Militancy'', p.240, note 9 was a British trade union which existed between 1886 and 1974. It represented workers in the cotton textil ...

of which it formed a part, and the

United Textile Factory Workers' Association The United Textile Factory Workers' Association (UTFWA) was a trade union federation in Great Britain. It was active from 1889 until 1975. Objectives The federation was founded in 1889, to represent the various textile workers' unions in polit ...

(UTFWA), which brought together most unions in the industry, all supported his candidacy in Stalybridge for the January 1910 general election, but this was ultimately abandoned due to a lack of local support. Instead, he was adopted as a candidate in Preston at the December 1910 general election. He took 7,855 votes and last place, although this was 23% of the votes cast in a close four-way contest."Preston Labour candidate resigns", '' Manchester Guardian'', 23 August 1913, p.9 Carr was re-adopted as Labour's Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Preston following the election, but the UTFWA withdrew its support in 1913, leading the Cardroom Amalgamation to leave in protest. Carr felt that his position was untenable and resigned his candidature. Carr was instead considered for selection in Accrington at the election expected in 1914 or 1915, but with the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the election was postponed and he ultimately did not stand for Parliament again. In 1926, Carr stood to become president of the Cardroom Amalgamation, but he was defeated by

Joseph Frayne Joseph Dominic Frayne (26 February 1882 – 11 December 1942) was a British trade union leader, who served as President of the Cardroom Amalgamation and Chair of the General Federation of Trade Unions. Frayne was born in Reddish and worked fo ...

, 35 votes to 34 in the final round of voting. Carr retired as union secretary in 1932, and his wife died the following year. He lived a further twenty years, dying aged 98.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, William Henry 1855 births 1953 deaths Labour Party (UK) parliamentary candidates British trade union leaders People from Bacup