Otley (UK Parliament constituency)

Otley was a parliamentary constituency between 1885 and 1918 centred on the town of Otley, then in the West Riding of Yorkshire and now in West Yorkshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.

Otley
Former constituency for the House of Commons
1885–1918
Seats	one
Created from	Eastern West Riding of Yorkshire
Replaced by	Keighley, Pudsey and Otley, Shipley and Skipton

History

The constituency was created when the two-member Eastern West Riding of Yorkshire was divided by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 for the 1885 general election in six new single-member constituencies. It was abolished for the 1918 general election, when it was largely replaced by the new Pudsey & Otley constituency.

Boundaries

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 provided that the constituency was to consist of-

• the Sessional Division of Otley and
• the Parishes of Beamsley in Addingham, Beamsley in Skipton, Bingley and Micklethwaite, Hazlewood with Storiths, Morton, and Nesfield with Langbar.

Members of Parliament

Year		Member	Party
	1885	Sir Andrew Fairbairn	Liberal
	1886	John Barran	Liberal
	1895	Marmaduke Wyvill	Conservative
	1900	Hastings Duncan	Liberal
1918		constituency abolished

Elections

Elections in the 1880s

Frederick Fison

General election 1885: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Andrew Fairbairn	5,050	58.1
	Conservative	Frederick Fison	3,643	41.9
Majority			1,407	16.2
Turnout			8,693	88.0
Registered electors			9,883
	Liberal win (new seat)

General election 1886: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Barran	4,245	55.8	−2.3
	Liberal Unionist	Andrew Fairbairn	3,361	44.2	+2.3
Majority			884	11.6	−4.6
Turnout			7,606	77.0	−11.0
Registered electors			9,883
	Liberal hold		Swing	−2.3

Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Barran	4,713	53.9	−1.9
	Conservative	Marmaduke Wyvill	4,023	46.1	+1.9
Majority			690	7.8	−3.8
Turnout			8,736	75.6	−1.4
Registered electors			11,557
	Liberal hold		Swing	−1.9

M.D. Wyvill

General election 1895: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Marmaduke Wyvill	4,670	50.3	+4.2
	Liberal	John Barran	4,622	49.7	−4.2
Majority			48	0.6	N/A
Turnout			9,292	84.2	+8.6
Registered electors			11,038
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+4.2

Elections in the 1900s

Hastings Duncan

General election 1900: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Duncan	5,327	52.9	+3.2
	Conservative	Marmaduke Wyvill	4,747	47.1	−3.2
Majority			580	5.8	N/A
Turnout			10,074	83.0	−1.2
Registered electors			12,138
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+3.2

General election 1906: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Duncan	6,307	57.5	+4.6
	Conservative	William Whittaker Thompson	4,658	42.5	−4.6
Majority			1,649	15.0	+9.2
Turnout			10,965	86.5	+3.5
Registered electors			12,670
	Liberal hold		Swing	+4.6

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Duncan	6,911	58.0	+0.5
	Conservative	William Whittaker Thompson	5,010	42.0	−0.5
Majority			1,901	16.0	+1.0
Turnout			11,921	89.0	+2.5
Registered electors			13,397
	Liberal hold		Swing	+0.5

General election December 1910: Otley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Duncan	6,151	55.7	−2.3
	Conservative	William Whittaker Thompson	4,892	44.3	+2.3
Majority			1,259	82.4	−4.6
Turnout			11,143	82.4	−6.6
Registered electors			13,397
	Liberal hold		Swing	−2.3

General Election 1914–15:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

• Liberal: James Duncan
• Unionist:

References

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "O"