March 2008
Merit Award for Exeter's First Lord Mayor
In March City MP Ben Bradshaw presented a Labour Party Merit Award to former city councillor Granville Baldwin to recognise the excellent and committed service he has given to the Labour Party over seven decades.
Granville
joined the Party at the age of 15 in 1945 at Farnworth Labour Club in
Bolton—the chief attractions being a good dance hall, table tennis
tables and lots of girls!
Coming form a mining village he was steeped in Labour politics. However Granville did not go down the mines but became a bespoke tailor and worked at Burton’s. He became a member of the National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers, and apart from his period of National Service was a union activist all of his life. Working as an organizer for the NUTGW brought him to Exeter in the 1970s.
When he and wife Dilys came to Exeter they soon became active in Countess Wear Labour Party, which at the time had 3 members! Countess Wear was a Tory stronghold, so nobody was more surprised than Granville himself when he took his seat in 1995.
Granville spent twelve years on the Council representing Countess Wear and then Priory wards. In 1997/98 he served as Deputy Mayor, and went on to be Mayor in 2001/2002. Just before his term finished Exeter was granted the status of having a Lord Mayor, so Granville was the first to hold the new title.