A collage created by Julian Trevelyan in 1937 has been acquired by Bolton Library and Museum Service

On the 27 January 1938…. There was a parliamentary by-election in Farnworth. Candidate Herbert Ryan (National Government/Conservatives) was defeated by George Tomlinson (Labour). Children joined in the campaign at a polling station at Moor Hall, on Church Street. And a van overturned on Vernon Street, near Bolton town centre.

These extracts are taken from Mass Observation’s study of the non-voter in Bolton which was brought to mind by the extraordinarily low turnouts for this week’s police commissioner elections. The first extract is taken from a draft written by Tom Harrisson for a book on voting which was never completed. It’s interesting how the same […]

On this day 75 years ago it was the municipal elections in Bolton. Mass Observation was involved with the Labour party campaign through observer Walter Hood, a staunch trade unionist. He can be seen in the back of this photograph of children who are marching in an election rally wearing paper hats. The leader of […]

A small number of Humphrey Spender’s written observations have survived in the Mass-Observation Archive. These texts really bring the photographs to life giving both factual information and an insight into Spender’s experiences photographing in Bolton. The observation below was made at the Conservative Club Rooms, in Farnworth on January 24th 1938 where volunteers were helping […]

As we approach this week’s local elections across the UK it is interesting or perhaps depressing to see how little party political rhetoric has evolved in 74 years. Mass-Observation recorded which statements by candidates got a ‘hear, hear!’ from the audience at pre-election rallies for the 1938 Farnworth parliamentary by-election. The accompanying photographs were taken […]