James Bell (trade unionist)

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James Bell
Member of Parliament
for Ormskirk
In office
14 December 1918 – October 1922
Preceded byArthur Stanley
Succeeded byFrancis Blundell
Personal details
Born27 August 1872
Darlington, County Durham
Died27 December 1955
Oldham, Lancashire
Political partyLabour
SpouseElizabeth Hannah Heaton (married 1895)
ChildrenAt least 6


James Bell (27 August 1872[1] – 27 December 1955)[2] was a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician who represented Ormskirk from 1918–22.[3][4] He was described by a fellow union official as "one of the shrewdest negotiators the trade unions in the cotton industry had ever had."[5]

Biography[edit]

Bell was born in Darlington, County Durham,[6] the son of John Bell, a coalminer, and his wife, Margaret (née Guy). At age 13, he began working as a cotton weaver at a factory in Haworth, Yorkshire, then moved with his father and brothers to Nelson, Lancashire to work in one of the town's mills.[4][7] He became involved in trade union activities, leading to his sacking on three occasions.[7] He subsequently moved to the town of Oldham, becoming secretary of the Oldham district of the Amalgamated Weavers' Association in 1905, the first of many posts he held with the organisation over the next 41 years, including vice-president (1930–37) and president (1937–45).[5]

He was the first president of the Oldham Labour Party, and attempted to gain election to the Borough Council without success.[3][7] In 1918, he was elected as member of parliament for Ormskirk, the first non-Conservative to be elected for this seat since its creation in 1885.[3] This was principally due to a divided Conservative vote between the Coalition Conservatives and the candidate of the National Farmers Union. Bell served only one term in parliament, losing his seat at the next election in 1922.[5]

After leaving parliament, Bell continued his union activities. In 1924, he was appointed secretary of the International Federation of Textile Workers' Associations, and from 1925 to 1931 was secretary of the United Textile Factory Workers Association—known as "the cotton workers parliament."[5] In 1930, he took part in a trade mission to China.[8][9][10] He also served on several government commissions and as a member of the National Arbitration Tribunal.[5]

Personal life and death[edit]

In 1895, Bell married Elizabeth Hannah Heaton.[3] They had at least six children,[11] including two sons who were in the Army during the First World War.[6] He later lived in Wythenshawe, Manchester. He died, aged 83, at the Oldham and District General Hospital in December 1955.[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ 1939 England and Wales Register
  2. ^ England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858–1966, 1973–1995
  3. ^ a b c d "Bell, James". Who Was Who. Oxford University Press. December 2007. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  4. ^ a b Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench illustrated with 500 armorial engravings (PDF). London: Dean & Son. 1922. p. 13. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Prominent trade unionist dies". Lancashire Evening Post. 28 December 1955. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  6. ^ a b "Some New Members – Mr. James Bell (Ormskirk)". Liverpool Daily Post. 30 December 1918. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  7. ^ a b c White, Joseph L (1978). The limits of trade union militancy: the Lancashire textile workers, 1910–1914. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 60–61. ISBN 978-0-313-20029-8.
  8. ^ Fowler, Alan (2003). Lancashire cotton operatives and work, 1900–1950: a social history of Lancashire cotton operatives in the twentieth century. Ashgate Publishing. pp. 102–103. ISBN 978-0-7546-0116-6.
  9. ^ "General Cable News". The Sydney Morning Herald. 1 August 1930. p. 12. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  10. ^ "Far East (Economic Mission)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 30 July 1930. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  11. ^ 1911 England Census
  12. ^ "Obituary". The Times. 29 December 1955. p. 10.

External links[edit]

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Ormskirk
1918 – 1922 		Succeeded by
Trade union offices
Preceded by
A. Birtles
 Secretary of the Oldham Weavers' Association
1905–1946 		Succeeded by
James Milhench
Preceded by Secretary of the International Federation of Textile Workers' Associations
1924–1925 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Secretary of the United Textile Factory Workers' Association
1925–1931 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Trades Union Congress representative to the American Federation of Labour
1929
With: James Thomas Brownlie 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Amalgamated Weavers' Association
1937–1947 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Cotton Group member of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress
1937–1945
With: William Wood (1937–1938)
Robert C. Handley (1938–1940)
Alfred Roberts (1940–1945) 		Succeeded by
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