Alan Davies, 1929 - 1930
Born at Pontesbury on the 23rd December 1873, Davies came to Wolverhampton in 1888 and began an association with the Great Western Railway which lasted fifty years. He became an engine cleaner, working on trains between Wolverhampton, Birkenhead and London. At the age of twenty-five he became a driver between London, Exeter, Cardiff and Birkenhead. Davies claimed that between the years 1899 and 1929 he covered over 1,500,000 miles! He acted as a representative for his railway colleagues, negotiating hours and conditions of work. From 1929 he was an inspector, a position he held until his retirement in 1938. He became a member of Wolverhampton Council in 1919 representing the Dunstall Ward until 1931, and was elected Mayor for the period 1929-30. He was on the majority of Council Committees and represented the Council around the country; and in recognition of his services he was presented with a gold key at the Annual Floral Fete. Davies was an active fundraiser and he personally raised £100,000 in 1931 to support local employees during times of illness. He was Chairman of the Royal Hospital Contribution Association. When such assistance became obsolete with the establishment of the National Health Service in 1948, he helped to form the Patients Aid Association. He became a magistrate in 1927 and was given the Freedom of the Borough in 1929. Davies eventually became the leader of Wolverhampton Labour Party and because of the nature of his employment he had an avid interest in transport. He was an auditor to the Associated Society of Locomotives and a delegate to Wolverhampton Trades Council. At the time of his death, aged eighty, on the 24th January 1954, he lived at 74 Craddock Street, Wolverhampton.

Obituary & Image Express and Star 25th January 1954
Leader of Labour Party Express and Star 26th January 1954
Funeral Express and Star 27th January 1954
Photograph Index - Y1/DAVIA and Y1DAVIE