Fred Lindley


Fred William Lindley was an English carpenter, trade unionist, and
Labour Party politician, sitting as MP for Rotherham from 1923–31.

Politics

Lindley helped found the Rotherham branch of the Independent Labour Party and the Sheffield Labour Representation Committee. He was elected at the 1923 general election as the Member of Parliament for Rotherham, defeating the sitting Conservative MP Frederic Arthur Kelley. Lindley held the seat until his defeat at the 1931 general election by the Conservative George Herbert.

Work

He briefly clerked for a pawnbroker, but became an apprentice joiner in 1895. He was a trade unionist with the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners from the age of 21, when he also joined the Independent Labour Party, serving on the union's national executive and as organiser of the Sheffield, Rotherham, and Barnsley district.

Early life

Lindley was born May 6, 1878, in Rawmarsh near Rotherham, and went to school in Rotherham and Sheffield.