STONELAKE
,
EDMUND WILLIAM
(
1873
-
1960
),
politician
and a key figure in establishing the
Labour Party
in the
Merthyr Boroughs
constituency;
b.
5 Apr. 1873
in
Merchant St.
,
Pontlotyn
,
Rhymney valley, Glam.
, last of the ten children of
George
and
Hannah
Stonelake
. His mother (b. in
Gloucester
) had a strong influence on him. He was brought up in a non-Welsh and
Anglican
home: two attributes which set him outside the
Nonconformist
,
Welsh
-speaking,
Liberal
culture characteristic of the
south Wales
coalfield during the
19th c.
He left school at the age of ten and began
working underground
at eleven after his mother, in their poverty, had altered his certificate of birth, but he had to leave the pit within a month when this was discovered, recommencing when he was 12. Towards the end of
1888
he and his widowed mother moved to live with an older brother at
Aberdare
because
coalminers
' wages were higher there, and he came into contact with the radical tradition of the valley.
Stonelake
said that the move had ‘
saved his soul
’. About
1892
his public life began with a local friendly society and as a student in a class held by
C.A.H.
Green
(see above)
,
vicar
of
Aberdare
. By
1895
Stonelake
considered himself to be a
Socialist
, and he was
elected to the committee
of the
Co-operative Movement
, the
Workers’ Hall
and his colliery lodge. Eventually he became
chairman
of the
District Miners' Executive Council
for
Aberdare
. He was one of the first students from
Wales
to attend
Ruskin College
in
Aug. 1901
. The experience made a lasting impression on him, but he returned in five months to the coalmine at
Aberdare
. He remained at the coalface until
1913
when he was elected by his fellow-workers in
Bwllfa mine
as
safety inspector in the mine
in compliance with the
1911 Mining Act
. He was the first person in
Britain
to be elected thus, but his right was disputed by the company which was owned by the family of
Sir
D. R.
Llewellyn
(see Supplement below)
until
Keir
Hardie
secured his authority in the
House of Commons
. He was afterwards elected
minimum wage representative
for his fellow-workers, and he retained these posts until
1946
. By
1897
he was a member of the
Aberdare Socialist Society
and was
secretary
of the local
Trades Unions Council
,
1902-29
. At the suggestion of this Council in
1902
Labour candidates
began to be nominated regularly for election to the local authority in
Aberdare
. In
1904
Stonelake
was himself elected to the authority, and he was
chairman of the local council
,
1909-10
.
Stonelake
and the
Labour
members pressed the authority to embark on a policy of public ventures. They
initiated a public tram system and an electricity supply for house and street lighting
; and as an education authority under the
1902 Act
they
opened a school for physically disabled children and those with learning difficulties
(
1913
) and a
baby clinic
(
1915
).
Stonelake
himelf was most proud of the appointment of a
health officer for the authority's schools
in
1907
, and later of a
service to provide meals for pupils in need
. He was also prominent in establishing
Aberdare General Hospital
(
1915
). Between
1904-14
he
led a strong campaign against the poor condition of houses in the area
. Consequently, the local council began to build houses shortly before the War and resumed the work in
1918
. However a
scandal concerning financial corruption among some of the council house officials
between
1919-22
cost
Stonelake
dearly as
chairman of the housing committee
; although he had no part in the offence he lost his seat permanently on the authority in
1922
. His innocence was confirmed by his appointment as
J.P.
in
1928
(an office he held
until 1950
). He was the
co-ordinator in the effort to support about 10,000 miners and their families during their strike
in
1926
which lasted six months after the
General Strike
ended. He was
secretary
of the
Labour Party
in the constituency (
1929-45
), and spent much of his time during the depression of the
1930s
organizing the protests of the unemployed
and preparing them for trials in the
Court of Referees
which constantly challenged their right to benefit payments.
He utterly despised
C.B.
Stanton
(see above)
for ‘
retreating from his party
’ and betraying
Keir
Hardie
in the hour of need in
1914
.
Stonelake
was the Representative for every candidate who stood in opposition to
Stanton
after
Keir
Hardie
's death, and his comments on
T.E.
Nicholas
and the
1918
election in particular are revealing.
Stonelake
was never a national figure, but he served leaders on the broader front. He worked hard to ensure that the
Labour Party
was deeply rooted in the
south Wales
coalfield. The span of his activity extended from the marginal days of the
I.L.P.
at the end of the 19th century up to the first time a
Labour government
obtained a secure majority under
Attlee
in
1945
. His life is a classical example of the effort which gave the
Labour Party
supremacy in
south Wales
politics in the 20th c.
He m., in
1895
,
Rebecca
Hobbs
(d.
1950
) and they had six sons and two daughters. He d.
5 Apr. 1960
.
Bibliography:
-
A. Mor-O'Brien
(ed.),
The autobiography of E. Stonelake
,
1981
(1981)
;
-
Aberdare Trades & Labour Council Jubilee
Souvenir
, 1950
(1950)
;
-
Morgannwg Journal of the Glamorgan History
Society
1957 ff
, 26
(1982)
, 53-71;
-
The Aberdare illustrated almanac
,
1904-22
;
-
Who's who in Wales
(1921 & 1937);
- W.W. Price deposits at Aberdare Central Library;
-
The Merthyr Express
,
8.8.1914
;
-
Aberdare Leader
,
15.8.1914
,
8.4.1922
,
16.9.1922
,
11.5.1929
,
9.4.1960
and
7.5.1960
;
-
Llafur journal of Welsh Labour
history
, 4, no. 3
(1986)
, 31-54;
-
Welsh History Review
, 14, no. 3
(1989)
, 399-416;
- information from his grandson.
Author:
David Leslie Davies, Aberdare
