1937 Liverpool City Council election

Elections to Liverpool City Council were held on 1 November 1937. One third of the council seats were up for election, the term of office of each councillor being three years.

Eight of the forty seats up for election were uncontested.

After the election, the composition of the council was:

Party		Councillors	±	Aldermen	Total
	Conservative	??	??	??	??
	Labour	??	??	??	??
	Protestant	??	??	??	??
	Independent	??	??	??	??
	Liberal	??	??	??	??

Election result[]

Liverpool Local Election Result 1937

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Conservative	27	8	1	+7	67.5%	57%	97,769
	Labour	11	1	8	-7	27.5%	37%	63,796
	Protestant	1	0	0	0	2.5%	2.6%	4,559
	Independent	1	0	0	0	2.5%	1.6%	2,778
	Liberal	0	0	0	0	0%	2.2%	3,790
	British Union of Fascists	0	0	0	0	0%	0.075%	129
	Independent Labour	0	0	0	0	0%	0.065%	113

Ward results[]

* - Councillor seeking re-election

Comparisons are made with the 1934 election results.

Abercromby[]

No. 9 Abercromby

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Reginald Bevins	2,803	55%
	Conservative	Richard Clitherow	2,291	45%
Majority			512
Registered electors			9,647
Turnout			5,094	53%
	Labour hold		Swing

Aigburth[]

No. 17 Aigburth

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Edward Stirling Napier	3,121	59%
	Liberal	John Richard Jones *	2,151	41%
Majority			970
Registered electors			10,659
Turnout			5,272	49%
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing

Allerton[]

No. 35

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Gertrude Elizabeth Wilson *	2,453	79%
	Labour	John Albert Riddell	635	21%
Majority			1,818
Registered electors			6,074
Turnout			3,088	51%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Anfield[]

No. 29 Anfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Young Williamson *	4,179	73%
	Labour	John Francis Kenrick	1,528	27%
Majority			2,651
Registered electors			11,273
Turnout			5,707	51%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Breckfield[]

No. 30 Breckfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George William Prout	4,046	75%
	Labour	William Tipping	1,343	25%
Majority			2,703
Registered electors			9,955
Turnout			5,389	54%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Brunswick[]

No. 11 Brunswick

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patrick Moorhead *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

Castle Street[]

No. 7

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Herbert Neville Bewley *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold		Swing

Childwall[]

No. 38

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Stanley Foster	2,423	55%
	Liberal	William Minto Mirrlees	1,639	37%
	Labour	John Wood	319	7%
Majority			784
Registered electors			7,427
Turnout			4,381	59%
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing

Croxteth[]

No. 40

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alfred Hargreaves *	3,570	62%
	Independent	James Charles Pollard	2,148	38%
Majority			1,422
Registered electors			19,973
Turnout			5,718[
	Labour hold		Swing

Dingle[]

No. 12 Dingle

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George William Neale Gillespie	5,798	61%
	Labour	John David Towers *	3,678	39%
Majority			2,120
Registered electors			14,812
Turnout			9,476	64%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Edge Hill[]

No.No. 18 Edge Hill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Bertram Saul Morgan	3,568	56%
	Labour	Agnes Mitton *	2,817	44%
Majority			751
Registered electors			11,591
Turnout			6,385	55%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Everton[]

No. 21 Everton

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Nickson *	4,268	64%
	Conservative	James Moore	2,418	36%
Majority			1,850
Registered electors			12,052
Turnout			6,686	55%
	Labour hold		Swing

Exchange[]

No. 5

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Peter Kavanagh *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Independent hold		Swing

Fairfield[]

No. 31 Fairfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles Gordon Snowdon Gordon *	2,983	62%
	Labour	Harold Stanley Martin	1,813	38%
Majority			1,170
Registered electors			10,410
Turnout			4,796	46%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Fazakerley[]

No. 27

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Albert Gray Meredith	4,168	65%
	Labour	Francis Lavery *	2,278	35%
Majority			1,890
Registered electors			11,985
Turnout			6,446	54%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Garston[]

No. 37 Garston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Alfred Millwood Proffit	2,857	56%
	Labour	John Herbert Webster *	2,201	44%
Majority			656
Registered electors			8,005
Turnout			5,058	63%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Granby[]

No. 14

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ernest Tyrer	2,781	53%
	Labour	Miss Mary Cumella *	2,454	47%
Majority			327
Registered electors			9,699
Turnout			5,235	54%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Great George[]

No. 10

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Hamilton *	1,310	68%
	Independent	Stamford Botley	630	32%
Majority			1,310
Registered electors			4,346
Turnout			1,940	45%
	Labour hold		Swing

Kensington[]

No. 19 Kensington

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Case *	3,808	68%
	Labour	Leo Patrick Taylor	1,780	32%
Majority			2,028
Registered electors			10,871
Turnout			5,588	51%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Kirkdale[]

No. 24 Kirkdale

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Joseph Alan Reston	5,420	56%
	Labour	William James Riddick *	4,209	44%
Majority			1,211
Registered electors			16,128
Turnout			9,629	60%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Little Woolton[]

No. 39

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Rupert Henry Bremner *	496	88%
	Labour	George Thomas Wood	69	12%
Majority			427
Registered electors			874
Turnout			565	65%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Low Hill[]

No. 20

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Harvey Steel	3,271	53%
	Labour	Frederick Charles Pasco *	2,932	47%
Majority			339
Registered electors			10,319
Turnout			6,203	60%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Much Woolton[]

No. 36

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Vivian Forsyth Crosthwaite *	1,453	71%
	Labour	Andrew Campbell	586	29%
Majority			867
Registered electors			2,911
Turnout			2,039	70%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Netherfield[]

No. 22

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Evan Thomas Edwards	4,436	68%
	Labour	John Bagot	2,073	32%
Majority			2,363
Registered electors			10,638
Turnout			6,509	61%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

North Scotland[]

No. 2

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patrick Fay *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

Old Swan[]

No. 32 Old Swan

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Waterworth *	5,770	63%
	Labour	John Gordon Houston	3,370	37%
Majority			2,400
Registered electors			18,227
Turnout			9,140	50%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Prince's Park[]

No. 13 Prince's Park

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Perrins Bevan	3,484	63%
	Labour	Alfred Demain *	2,050	37%
Majority			1,434
Registered electors			9,664
Turnout			5,534	57%
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

Sandhills[]

No. 1

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Thomas Henry Dunford *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

St. Anne's[]

No. 6 St. Anne's

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John David Mack *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

St. Domingo[]

No. 23

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Protestant	William Reuben Price *	4,559	77%
	Labour	John Victor Shortt	1,350	23%
Majority			3,209
Registered electors			10,968
Turnout			5,909	54%
	Protestant hold		Swing

St. Peter's[]

No. 8

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Hugh Carr	551	52%
	Conservative	Sydney James Hill *	512	48%
Majority			39
Registered electors			2,353
Turnout			1,063	45%
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Sefton Park East[]

No. 15 Sefton Park East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Webster Green Armour *	2,710	76%
	Labour	John Henry Higgins	848	24%
Majority			1,862
Registered electors			8,752
Turnout			3,558	41%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Sefton Park West[]

No. 16 Sefton Park West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Graham Reece *	2,785	76%
	Labour	Mary Woodward Walbank	876	24%
Majority			1,909
Registered electors			6,718
Turnout			3,661	545
	Conservative hold		Swing

South Scotland[]

No. 3

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joseph Harrington *	3,619'	97%
	Independent Labour	Charles Malachie Williams	113	3%
Majority			3,619
Registered electors			7,964
Turnout			3,732	47%
	Labour hold		Swing

Vauxhall[]

No. 4 Vauxhall

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joseph Leo Carney *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

Walton[]

No. 25 Walton

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Richards Bailey *	6,289	72%
	Labour	Richard Austin Rockliff	2,442	28%
Majority			3,847
Registered electors			16,609
Turnout			8,731	535
	Conservative hold		Swing

Warbreck[]

No. 26 Warbreck

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Alexander Critchley *	4,251	71%
	Labour	William Bent	1,778	29%
Majority			2,473
Registered electors			13,336
Turnout			6,029	45%
	Conservative hold		Swing

Wavertree[]

No. 34 Wavertree

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Village *	unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold		Swing

Wavertree West[]

No. 33 Wavertree West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Maurice Voss	3,129	67%
	Labour	Daniel Whelan	1,436	31%
	British Union of Fascists	William Edwards	129	2.7%
Majority			1,693
Registered electors			8,681
Turnout			4,694	54%
	Conservative hold		Swing

West Derby[]

No. 28 West Derby

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Duncan French *	6,869	71%
	Labour	Joseph Henry Sayle	2,810	29%
Majority			4,059
Registered electors			20,686
Turnout			9,679	47%
	Conservative hold		Swing

^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]}

Aldermanic Elections[]

Aldermanic Election 1 December 1937[]

Caused by the death of Alderman Maxwell Hyslop Maxwell C.B. C.B.E. (Conservative, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1935),^[7] in whose place Councillor John Morris Griffith (Conservative, elected to the Wavertree ward on 1 November 1936)^[8] was elected as an alderman on 1 December 1937.

Aldermanic Election 1 December 1937
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Allocated ward
	Conservative	Councillor John Morris Griffith	60	100%	No. 28 West Derby

^[9][10]

The term of office to expire on 9 November 1941.

Aldermanic Election 2 March 1938[]

Caused by the death on 25 January 1938 of Alderman Sir Thomas White (Conservative, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1932),^[11][12] in whose place Councillor William Thomas Roberts J.P. (Conservative, elected to the Abercromby ward on 1 November 1936)^[13] was elected as an alderman by the councillors on 2 March 1938.

Aldermanic Election 2 March 1938
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Allocated ward
	Conservative	Councillor William Thomas Roberts	54	100%	No. 20 Low Hill

^{[14] [15]}

The term of office to expire on 9 November 1938.

Aldermanic Election 6 July 1938[]

Caused by the death on 22 May 1938 of Alderman Edwin Haigh (Conservative, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1935).^[7][16] In whose place, Councillor Robert Duncan French (Conservative, elected to the West Derby ward on 1 November 1937)^[17] was elected as an alderman by the councillors on 6 July 1938.

Aldermanic Election 6 July 1938
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Allocated ward
	Conservative	Councillor Robert Duncan French	52	100%	No. 8 St. Peter's

^{[18] [19]}

The term of office to expire on 9 November 1941.

Aldermanic Election 27 July 1938[]

Caused by the death on 5 July 1938 of Alderman James Bolger (Independent, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1932).^[11][20] In whose place Councillor George Young Williamson (Conservative, elected to represent Anfield on 1 November 1937)^[21] was elected to the post of alderman on 27 July 1938.

Aldermanic Election 6 July 1938
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Allocated ward
	Conservative	Councillor George Young Williamson	56	66%	No. 8 St. Peter's
	Labour	Councillor Bertie Victor Kirby MP	25	29%	not elected
	Independent	Councillor Peter Kavanagh	3	4%	not elected
	Protestant	Councillor Mary Jane Longbottom	1	1%	not elected

^{[22] [23] [24]}

The term of office to expire on 9 November 1938.

By-elections[]

No.31 Fairfield, 30 November 1937[]

Caused by the death of Councillor John Barry (Conservative, elected 1 November 1935).^[25]

No. 31 Fairfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Richard Clitherow	2,305	74%
	Labour	Harold Stanley Martin	831	26%
Majority			1,474
Registered electors			10,410
Turnout			3,136	30%
	Conservative hold		Swing

^[26]

The term of office to expire on 1 November 1938.

No.1 Sandhills, 9 December 1937[]

Caused by the election as an alderman on 6 October 1937 of Councillor John Wolfe Tone Morrissey JP (Labour, last elected to the Sandhills ward on 1 November 1936),^[27] following the death on 7 September 1937^[28] of Alderman Henry Walker (Labour, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1935).^[29]

No. 1

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Henry Aldritt	3,686	70%
		William Edward McLachlan	1,548	30%
Majority			2,138
Registered electors
Turnout			5,234
	Labour hold		Swing

^[30]

The term of office to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.2 North Scotland, 9 December 1937[]

Caused by the death on 13 September 1937^[28] of Councillor Henry Gaskin (Labour, elected 1 November 1935).^[31]

No. 2

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patrick O'Brien	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

^[32]

The term of office to expire on 1 November 1938.

No.11 Brunswick, 9 December 1937[]

Caused by the resignation of Councillor Patrick Moorhead (Labour, elected unopposed for the Brunswick ward on 1 November 1937)^[33]

No. 11 Brunswick

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joseph Whitehead	unopposed
Registered electors
	Labour hold		Swing

^[32][34]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1940.

No.34 Wavertree, 11 January 1938[]

Caused by Councillor John Morris Griffith J.P. (Conservative, elected to the Wavertree ward on 1 November 1936)^[8] being elected by the councillors as an alderman on 1 December 1937,^[9][10] following the death of Alderman Maxwell Hyslop Maxwell C.B. C.B.E. (Conservative, elected as an alderman 9 November 1935).^[7]

No. 34 Wavertree

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Harold Threlfall Wilson	2,969	96%
		William Edwards	132
Majority			2,837
Registered electors
Turnout			3,101
	Conservative hold		Swing

^{[35] [36]}

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.38 Childwall, 24 February 1938[]

Caused by the resignation of Councillor Alan Anderson Boyle (Liberal, elected unopposed 1 November 1936)^[37]

No. 38

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		William Moss
		Edward Thomas White
		Andrew Campbell
		Arthur Morris
Majority
Registered electors			7,427
Turnout
			Swing

^[38]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.9 Abercromby, Tuesday 5 April 1938[]

Caused by the election as an alderman of Councillor William Thomas Roberts J.P. (Conservative, elected to the Abercromby ward on 1 November 1936) was elected as an alderman by the councillors on 2 March 1938,^[14][15] following the death on 25 January 1938^[12] of Alderman Sir Thomas White (Conservative, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1932).^[11]

No. 9 Abercromby

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Joseph James Eastwood Sloan	1,978	49.7%
		Andrew Campbell	1,972	49.6%
		Thomas Lyon Hurst	27	0.007%
Majority			6
Registered electors			9,647
Turnout			3,977	41%
			Swing

^[39]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.15 Sefton Park East, Tuesday 31 May 1938[]

Occasioned by the resignation of Councillor Eric Douglas Mackay Heriot-Hill (Conservative, elected to the Sefton Park East ward on 1 November 1936).^[40]

No. 15 Sefton Park East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Dinsdale Walker	1,344	76%
		Muriel Edith Mee	418	24%
Majority			926
Registered electors			8,752
Turnout			1,762	20%
			Swing

^[41]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.32 Old Swan, Tuesday 14 June 1938[]

Caused by the death in May 1938 of Councillor John Waterworth (Conservative, elected to the Old Swan ward on 1 November 1937).^[42][16]

No. 32 Old Swan

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Haswell	2,323	66%
	Labour	John Gordon Houston	1,212	34%
Majority			1,111
Registered electors			18,227
Turnout			3,535	19%
	Conservative hold		Swing

^[20][18]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1940.

No.24 Kirkdale, Tuesday 26 July 1938[]

Caused by the resignation of Councillor Arthur Mackson Brown (Conservative, elected for the Kirkdale ward on 1 November 1936).^[43]

No. 24 Kirkdale

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		William Edward McLachlan	3,226	55%
		Joseph Henry Sayle	2,644	45%
Majority			582
Registered electors			16,128
Turnout			5,870	36%
	gain from		Swing

^[44]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1939.

No.28 West Derby, 26 July 1938[]

Caused by Councillor Robert Duncan French (Conservative, elected to the West Derby ward on 1 November 1937)^[17] being elected by the councillors as an alderman on 6 July 1938,^[18][19] following the death on 22 May 1938 of Alderman Edwin Haigh (Conservative, last elected as an alderman on 9 November 1935).^[7][16]

No. 28 West Derby

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles William Wingrove	unopposed
Registered electors			20,686
	Conservative hold		Swing

^[22]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1940.

No.29 Anfield, 30 August 1938[]

Caused by the election to the post of alderman on 27 July 1938 of Councillor George Young Williamson (Conservative, elected to represent Anfield on 1 November 1937),^{[21][22][23][24]} following the death on 5 July 1938 of Alderman James Bolger.^[20]

No. 29 Anfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William John Harrop	unopposed
Registered electors			11,273
	Conservative hold		Swing

^[45]

The term of office due to expire on 1 November 1940.

See also[]

• Liverpool City Council
• Liverpool Town Council elections 1835 - 1879
• Liverpool City Council elections 1880–present
• Mayors and Lord Mayors of Liverpool 1207 to present
• History of local government in England

References[]