Westhoughton was a parliamentary constituency

United Kingdom constituencies

In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...

 in Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

, England. Centred on the former mining and cotton town of Westhoughton

Westhoughton

Westhoughton is a town and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is southwest of Bolton, east of Wigan and northwest of Manchester....

, it returned one Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom

Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...

.

The constituency was created for the 1885 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1885

-Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...

, and abolished for the 1983 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1983

The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...

.

1885–1918

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885

Redistribution of Seats Act 1885

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equally populated constituencies, in an attempt to equalise representation across...

 divided the existing constituency of South East Lancashire

South East Lancashire (UK Parliament constituency)

South East Lancashire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was represented by two Members of Parliament...

 into eight single-member seats. The new seat of South-East Lancashire, Westhoughton Division comprised an area surrounding, but not including, the County Borough of Bolton

County Borough of Bolton

Bolton was, from 1838 to 1974, a local government district in the northwest of England, conterminate with the town of Bolton.-History:Bolton was created a free borough in 1253 when William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby granted a charter. However the borough did not develop into a self-governing...

. It consisted of the towns of Aspull, Blackrod

Blackrod

Blackrod is a settlement and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is north-northeast of Wigan and west of Bolton and, according to the United Kingdom Census 2001, has a population of 5,300....

, Horwich

Horwich

Horwich is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Chorley, northwest of Bolton and northwest from the city of Manchester. It lies at the southern edge of the West Pennine Moors with the M61 motorway close to the...

, Little Lever

Little Lever

Little Lever is a large village within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it is southeast of Bolton, west of Radcliffe, and west-southwest of Bury....

, Turton and Westhoughton, and the surrounding townships

Township (England)

In England, a township is a local division or district of a large parish containing a village or small town usually having its own church...

 of Anglezarke

Anglezarke

Anglezarke is a sparsely populated civil parish in the Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England. It is dominated by reservoirs that were built to supply water to Liverpool, and a large expanse of moorland with evidence of Bronze Age settlements...

, Bradshaw

Bradshaw, Greater Manchester

Bradshaw is suburb of the unparished area of South Turton, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, it lies on the southern edge of the West Pennine Moors.-History:...

, Breightmet

Breightmet

Breightmet is a neighbourhood of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, it lies 2 miles north east of Bolton and 4 miles north-west of Bury...

, Darcy Lever

Darcy Lever

Darcy Lever is a township within the Metropoliton Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, the village lies on the B6209 , between Bolton and Little Lever...

, Edgworth

Edgworth

Edgworth is a small village within the Blackburn with Darwen borough of Lancashire, England. It is north east of North Turton between Broadhead Brook on the west and Quarlton Brook in the south east...

, Entwistle

Entwistle, Lancashire

Entwistle is a village in the Blackburn with Darwen unitary authority in Lancashire in the north west of England.Its name derives from the Old English ened and twisla which means a river fork frequented by ducks. The name was recorded as Hennetwisel in 1212, Ennetwysel in 1276 and Entwissell in 1311...

, Great Lever

Great Lever

Great Lever is mainly a residential suburb of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically within Lancashire, it is about 2½ miles south of Bolton town centre and the same distance north of Farnworth town centre. Great Lever has many shops and services serving the local community...

, Harwood

Harwood, Greater Manchester

Harwood is a suburb to the north-northeast of Bolton, Greater Manchester, bordering Bury in North West England.-History:The township was recorded as Harewode in 1212 and 1302. The manor which included Bradshaw, was part of the Manchester fee held by the Grelleys in the Middle Ages. In 1212 it was...

, Heaton

Heaton, Greater Manchester

Heaton is a mostly residential district and council ward of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. It lies about two miles north west of Bolton town centre...

, Longworth

Longworth

Longworth is a village and civil parish about west of Abingdon and a similar distance east of Faringdon and south of Witney. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire...

, Lostock, Middle Hulton

Middle Hulton

Middle Hulton was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Deane in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England. It was located miles south west of Bolton.-History:...

, Over Hulton

Over Hulton

Over Hulton is a suburb of Westhoughton within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester,England.It lies south west of Bolton.-History:...

, Quarlton

Quarlton

Quarlton was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England. It lay north east of Bolton.-Topynomy:...

 and Rivington

Rivington

Rivington is a small village and civil parish of the Borough of Chorley, Lancashire, England, occupying . It is about southeast of Chorley and about northwest of Bolton. Rivington is situated on the fringe of the West Pennine Moors, at the foot of Rivington Pike...

, plus the parts of Rumworth

Rumworth

Rumworth is an electoral ward of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically it was part of the hundred of Salford in Lancashire and centre of the Parish of Deane which once covered roughly half of the present Metropolitan Borough of Bolton...

, Sharples

Sharples

Sharples is a placename and may refer to:* Sharples, Greater Manchester* Sharples, West VirginiaAs a surname it may refer to:* Carrie Sharples, fictional character* Ellen Sharples, English painter* Ena Sharples, fictional character...

 and Tonge with Haulgh

Tonge with Haulgh

Tonge with Haulgh was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England.-Toponymy:...

 outside the Parliamentary Borough of Bolton

Bolton (UK Parliament constituency)

Bolton was a borough constituency centred on the town of Bolton in the county of Lancashire. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons for the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the bloc vote system....

.

1918–1950

The Representation of the People Act 1918

Representation of the People Act 1918

The Representation of the People Act 1918 was an Act of Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in the United Kingdom. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act...

 reorganised parliamentary seats throughout Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

. Constituencies were redefined in terms of the urban

Urban district

In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....

 and rural district

Rural district

Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the administrative counties.-England and Wales:In England...

s created by the Local Government Act 1894

Local Government Act 1894

The Local Government Act 1894 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 under the Local Government Act 1888...

. Lancashire, Westhoughton Division consisted of five adjoining urban districts: Aspull, Blackrod, Hindley

Hindley, Greater Manchester

Hindley is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan in Greater Manchester, England. Lying three miles east of Wigan it covers an area of 1044 hectares. Historically a part of Lancashire, Hindley which includes Hindley Green borders the towns of Ince-in-Makerfield and Leigh within Wigan...

, Horwich and Westhoughton.

1950–1983

The next redrawing of English constituencies was effected by the Representation of the People Act 1948

Representation of the People Act 1948

The Representation of the People Act 1948 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered the law relating to parliamentary and local elections...

. The Act introduced the term "county constituency". Westhoughton County Constituency was enlarged by the addition of Standish with Langtree Urban District and Wigan Rural District

Wigan Rural District

Wigan was a rural district in Lancashire, England from 1894 to 1974. It comprised an area to the north, but did not include the town Wigan.The district was created by the Local Government Act 1894 as the successor to the Wigan Rural Sanitary District....

. The revised boundaries were first used at the 1950 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1950

The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...

, and were unchanged until abolition.

Abolition

The 1983 redistribution of seats reflected local government reforms made in 1974

Local Government Act 1972

The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....

. The bulk of the seat became part of the parliamentary county of Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...

: Blackrod, Horwich and Westhoughton formed part of the new Bolton West county constituency

Bolton West (UK Parliament constituency)

Bolton West is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...

, Aspull and Standish part of Wigan borough constituency

Wigan (UK Parliament constituency)

Wigan is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...

 and Hindley was included in Leigh borough constituency

Leigh (UK Parliament constituency)

Leigh is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...

. Some parishes in the north of the old constituency remained in Lancashire, and were included in Chorley county constituency

Chorley (UK Parliament constituency)

Chorley is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...

Proposed recreation

In September 2011, the Boundary Commission for England proposed recreating a Westhoughton constituency as part of the wider Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies

Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies

The Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, also known as the 2013 Review, is an ongoing process by which parliamentary constituencies to the British House of Commons will be reformed, to comply with the revised rules for the number and size of constituencies introduced by the...

. It would incorporate Westhoughton, Blackrod, Hindley, Atherton, and parts of Horwich and Leigh

Members of Parliament

Election		Member	Party
	1885 United Kingdom general election, 1885 -Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...	Frank Hardcastle Frank Hardcastle Frank Hardcastle was a British bleacher and businessman and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1885 to 1892....	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1892 United Kingdom general election, 1892 The 1892 United Kingdom general election was held from 4 July to 26 July 1892. It saw the Conservatives, led by Lord Salisbury, win the greatest number of seats, but not enough for an overall majority as William Ewart Gladstone's Liberals won many more seats than in the 1886 general election...	Edward Stanley Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby Edward George Villiers Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby KG, GCB, GCVO, TD, PC, KGStJ, JP , known as Lord Stanley from 1893 to 1908, was a British soldier, Conservative politician, diplomat and racehorse owner. He was twice Secretary of State for War and also served as British Ambassador to...	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1906 United Kingdom general election, 1906 -Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...	William Tyson Wilson William Tyson Wilson William Tyson Wilson was a British trade unionist and Labour politician.Tyson was born in Westmorland, moving to Bolton, Lancashire, in 1889. He was a carpenter, and joined the Bolton branch of the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners...	Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
	1921 by-election	Rhys Davies Rhys Davies (politician) Rhys John Davies was a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician.Davies was born in Llangennech, Carmarthenshire, Wales, the son of Rhys and Ann Davies. After an elementary education he initially worked as a farm labourer. He subsequently moved to the Rhondda Valley, where he worked as a...	Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
	1951 by-election Westhoughton by-election, 1951 The Westhoughton by-election took place on 21 June 1951. The contest followed the resignation of the sitting Labour Party member of parliament, Rhys Davies....	Tom Price Tom Price (UK politician) Joseph Thomas "Tom" Price was a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician.He was born in Pendlebury, Lancashire, the son of William Price, a coalminer, and his wife Elizabeth...	Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
	1973 by-election Westhoughton by-election, 1973 The Westhoughton by election took place for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in Westhoughton on 24 May 1973.It was won by Roger Stott who held the seat for Labour after the death on 1 February of the previous MP, Tom Price.-External links:*...	Roger Stott Roger Stott Roger Stott, CBE was a British Labour Party politician.-Biography:Stott was born in Rochdale, the first child of Richard and Edith Stott. He went to school in Rochdale and when he was 15 he joined the Merchant Navy...	Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...		constituency abolished

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1940s