Ernest George Rowlinson (15 March 1882 – 4 January 1941) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. Born in

Great Shelford Great Shelford is a village located approximately to the south of Cambridge, in Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained bisected by the River Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people. By 2001, this had g ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

, Rowlinson moved to Chesterfield around 1895 to work on the railways. He joined the

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party (UK), Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse work ...

(ILP) and the

Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants The Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants (ASRS) was a trade union of railway workers in the United Kingdom from 1872 until 1913. History The ASRS was an industrial union founded in 1871 with the support of the Liberal MP Michael Thomas Bas ...

(ASRS); he subsequently moved to Sheffield and led the ASRS branch at

Sheffield railway station Sheffield station (formerly Pond Street and later Sheffield Midland) is a combined railway station and tram stop in Sheffield, England; it is the busiest station in South Yorkshire, and the second busiest in Yorkshire & the Humber, after Leed ...

, where he was prominent in the railway strike of 1911.Helen Mathers, ''Dictionary of Labour Biography'', vol.VI, pp.235-236 Rowlinson was sacked after the strike of 1911 and instead worked for the

Co-operative Insurance Society Co-op Insurance Services Limited, trading as Co-op Insurance, is a general insurance company which is part of the Co-operative Group, based in Manchester, United Kingdom. For most of its history, Co-op Insurance was also a life insurer and fu ...

, although he remained a member of the ASRS, who elected him as their delegate to Sheffield Trades and Labour Council. He was elected as president of the council in 1913, and worked in particular to promote Labour Party candidates in the city. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he fought overseas with the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. In 1921, Rowlinson was elected to

Sheffield City Council Sheffield City Council is the local authority for the City of Sheffield, a metropolitan borough with city status in South Yorkshire, England. The council consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. ...

, representing Crookesmoor, becoming the leader of the Labour group the following year. In 1926, Labour became the largest group on the council, and Rowlinson became the first Labour Party council leader in a major British city. He resigned his position on the trades council to focus on the city council, and he led a successful regime, widely imitated across the country. In particular, it greatly expanded education provision in the city, and built the new

Sheffield Central Library Sheffield Central Library is a public library in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It houses the city library service's single largest general lending and reference collection, as well as Graves Art Gallery, on the third floor, and a theat ...

. In 1937/38, he also served as

Lord Mayor of Sheffield The Lord Mayor of Sheffield is a ceremonial post held by a member of Sheffield City Council. They are elected annually by the council. The post originated in 1843, with the appointment of William Jeffcock as the first Mayor of Sheffield. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowlinson, Ernest 1882 births 1941 deaths Trade unionists from Derbyshire Trade unionists from Sheffield Labour Party (UK) councillors Lord mayors of Sheffield People from Great Shelford People from Chesterfield, Derbyshire Leaders of local authorities of England