CONTENTS 1 Ammanford Co-operative Society – the beginnings 2 The National Co-operative Movement – its beginnings 3 The Co-op in 2000 4 Ammanford Co-op Jubillee Booklet 1950 1. Ammanford Co-operative Movement – the beginnings
Many an old book or photograph seems harmless enough when stacked on shelves or hidden away in drawers, well out of sight. But take them down for a few moments of browsing and they turn out to have unsuspected powers. A door in the mind quietly opens and suddenly the past, completely uninvited, has slipped through and is demanding your attention. An old pamphlet, published in 1950 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Co-operative Movement in Ammanford, provided the key. That door in the mind creaked open.
It's said that everyone over a certain age remembers their mother's Co-op number as if it had been carved into their memory at birth. My mother's number was 1192 so that could well be true. And my grandmother's was 648. The Co-op was an institution in Ammanford that carried, at least until the late 1950s, almost as much influence, and probably even more respect, than the Chapels.
The name "Co-operative Wholesale Society", to give it its full, resonant title, proved so unpronounceable to our childish tongues that it was known simply as the "Cop". I think it was that hyphen in "Co-op" that threw us; highly suspicious that was and most un-Welsh. And its initial letters, CWS, were believed to stand for "Caws Wedi Sychu" – cheese gone dry. Not very complimentary to its dairy produce or the shelf life of its cheese, it has to be admitted.
And I'm sure everyone over a certain age can also remember that well known Ammanford character, "Clerans y Cop", whose appearance twice yearly had the same affect as a stick poked into an ant's next, plunging many families into a profound state of agitation. For "Clerans y Cop" was none other than the "Clearance of the Co-op", the day of reckoning every half-year when the credit built up over the previous six months had to be paid off.
The Co-op was a national shopping network that was owned by the shoppers themselves, all profits going back to them in the form of a dividend. You paid £5.00 to join the Co-op and when you bought at any of its outlets you could either pay there and then or run up credit which you paid back after six months. Every six months, too, you received your dividend, which in the 1950s was 2 shillings and sixpence in the pound, or 12.5 percent. You could then choose whether to "raise" this dividend (that is, to take the money out), use it to pay off your accumulated credit, or keep it in the form of savings, in which case it gathered a further sixpence in the pound interest. In effect, for every pound you spent, three shillings (15 pence) was given back to you. That's fifteen percent, not bad, and a far better idea, it was thought, than giving it to anonymous shareholders, who neither worked nor spent money in the shops.
My grandmother was in fact able to pay for the wedding of my mother and father out of her saved dividends, which was a very common way for working class people to find the cost of getting married. Christmas presents usually came from the same source and you bought most of your daily needs there – food, furniture, clothes – while you also insured for your funeral costs at the Co-op and got buried by them, so it was an all-embracing institution indeed. From the cradle to the grave in fact – and the Co-op even helped you on your way to the grave by selling their own brand of cigarettes, called "Navy Cut". And you got three shillings back on everything you bought. Many, including my great grandmother, never shopped anywhere else. It must have been a reassuring thought to know that every time you bought you were in fact saving. Under our more common capitalist system the reverse seems to be true – every time you buy you get in debt! Consumerism in its modern form has been described, with some justice, as buying what you don't need with money you don't have.
But the Co-operative Societies of Ammanford go back a bit further than my childhood memories. And the Co-operative Societies of the rest of Britain go back even further than Ammanford's. Let's take that journey back.
Ammanford Co-op, the beginnings
In 1900 three people – Iestyn Williams, J C Shaw and a tin plate worker called Henry James – gathered on Ammanford Square in order to talk earnestly over a project which had occupied their minds for some time. Co-operatives had started in other places – why not Ammanford? A Lancashire man, J C Shaw of Wigan, being a colliery official – which meant a man of influence – had talked many times about the spread of Co-operatives in Lancashire, where the movement was born, so what was good for Wigan, he argued, must certainly be good for Ammanford. After a public meeting at the old Ivorites Hall in Ammanford the first committee was formed and the Co-op opened on June 14th 1900 on Bancyrynn, on the corner of College Street and Margaret Street. Sixty people subscribed between £3 and £5 each as individual shareholders to make this possible.
From the beginning the Co-op encountered opposition and hostility from the other shop keepers of Ammanford, and many traders of the town went as far as to offer two shillings in the pound discount to their customers rather than see them joining the Co-operative Society. Despite this, the new Co-op flourished and they even had to enlarge the premises with voluntary labour and whose building, after a brief spell as a Job Centre, still stands on its original site in Ammanford today, though no longer with its original function.
At first the manager carried the goods around to customers himself but this became too much of a burden so one John Watts was engaged to do this work. But his horse and gambo proved too slow so, as funds were a little short, it was agreed to purchase a horse and second hand cart in Cardiff. Councillor David George was appointed to strike the bargain – £20 for horse, cart, harness and whip. A Mr James Hutchings was the haulier but it was not possible to procure a stable for the horse, so great was the opposition to the Co-op in the town. There was nothing to be done but for them to build a stable themselves, which was again achieved through voluntary work by the committee. So much for the theory of free enterprise and fair trading.
There were major differences too, between shops in 1900 and 1950. Shops in 1900 were very small, poorly lighted and the assistants worked long hours for very low wages. The weekly half day holiday was not even compulsory and often not in effect. It was common practice for shops to be open until midnight, goods being delivered in the early hours of the morning.
As the General Manager H Stokes comments in the commemorative booklet back in 1950 "What a difference today! New methods of trading. Shops where customers may serve themselves are rapidly replacing the old stores. Shop hours are limited by law and, in our movement, to 44 hours a week. Co-operatives pioneered the weekly half-day holiday which is now legal and universal. Some societies close their shops on Saturday afternoons."
Well, looking at the position in 2005 gives the lie that progress brings improvement. Many shops are now open seven days a week, often late into the night, with the big supermarket chains at one point resorting to breaking the law to open on Sundays, and the government and local councils not lifting a finger to prosecute anyone. Yet those same Councils – and most of them Labour ones – sent almost 200 people, including pensioners, single parents and disabled people, to jail for non-payment of the Tories' ill fated Poll Tax. Is there a whiff of double standards here? Surely the government and our councils don't punish working class people for their poverty and let rich and powerful supermarkets off the hook?
By 1950 the number of Co-ops in Ammanford had grown to two: in College Street and Wind Street, as well as branches in Glanamman, Tycroes, Llandybie, Betws, Blaenau, Saron and Garnant; there was a bakery in Tirydail and a butcher's shop and van delivery service in Margaret Street. Only in the memory can we shop in them today, however, as they are no more. The number of staff employed in 1900 was one, which by 1950 had reached 81. The number of members in 1900 was 60 rising to 3,519 by 1950. And the lonely horse and second hand cart of 1900 had become eleven motor vehicles by 1950.
The Co-op in 1950 even had its own monthly colour magazine, entitled "Home". Looking through the 16 page "Home" magazine of June 1950 we see amongst its pages cookery recipes, an article urging peace with all nations during the 'Cold War', an article on the poet Tennyson, a short story, a gardening article entitled "The Month for Mulching", a full page on "National Foot Health Week" entitled "I am only as fit as my feet" (no, this is not made up, honestly), a children's page, a history of Punch and Judy, a round-up of Co-op news in Wales, an article on global warming (yes, even then) and an article entitled "Queer calls to the Fire Brigade" (an item by that title today would mean something quite different, and draw attention to firemen in a way they might not fully welcome). Days of innocence indeed.
The picture we get of the early Co-op movement is of unskilled and inexperienced men launching into the unknown and almost forbidden realms of commerce. The minutes of the first year of the Co-op can still be seen in the South Wales Miners Archive held at Swansea University. It's a children's soft-back exercise book, with the handwriting, equally childlike, bearing mute testimony to the social origins of those founders of what was eventually to become a huge chain of retail supermarkets and banker to the Labour Party and trade unions.
The history of the Co-ops in Ammanford mirrors, too, the history of the town. Strikes – some of short duration, others long and protracted – are reflected in the trading record of the Co-op in its first 50 years. Then there were the wars, slumps and booms, shortage of manpower, unemployment and migration of labour.
From its beginnings in 1900 Ammanford Co-op witnessed miners strikes in 1912 (the first national strike in world history, with one million men out for a minimum wage, which they won), and again in 1920, 1921, 1925 (The Anthracite Strike which affected the Anthracite District and with Ammanford as its storm centre), the 1926 General Strike and subsequent seven month lock-out of miners, and then the slump of the thirties, plus two world wars to round matters off.
During the various strikes the Co-op kept its credit going to miners and their families, even throughout the seven month lockout that followed the brief nine day General Strike of 1926. Many families took years to pay off the accumulated debts of those terrible years but pay them back they did eventually, for theirs was a generation for whom debt was a shame that had to be avoided at all costs. It's pretty safe to say, I think, that where the TUC leadership let down the miners in the most cowardly and unprincipled manner imaginable, in a way that was not to be witnessed again until the 1984/85 Miners' Strike, the early Co-operative movement stood by both its principles, and its members and their families.
In 1920, Ammanford's 1,700 members spent £176,941 with the Co-op in 1930, even though the membership had grown to 1,930, the sales had plummeted to just £82,053 – less than half of what it was a decade before. And the 1920 reserves of £1,881 in the bank had shrunk dramatically to just £36 in 1930! The depths of the depression in that decade, with its accompanying poverty and distress, can be imagined in those figures alone.
But as the General Secretary of Ammanford Co-op, J A Thomas, states in their 1950 Jubilee booklet -
"Yet we must remember, these are general pictures – pictures in the mass – which do not record human joys and sorrows. If you want real drama, romance and stark tragedy, then we must turn to the ledgers. These deal with individuals, and here you will find pictures, some frightening, but some warm and full of the milk of human kindness. Pictures of people fighting against poverty, unemployment and discord – people who laboured in vain to make two ends meet – and people worn out by worry and strain who came to an untimely end. Pictures of parents who gave all, who sacrificed all, who lived without the comforts, and even the necessities of life, in order to give their children a better start. However, it should be borne in mind that all the pictures are not set with a darkened background; the valley is not altogether a place of gloom, although it nestles under the foot of the Black Mountain. Song and laughter can always be heard, and this carefree happiness is duly recorded in the ledgers. Yes, we have illustrations here of loyalty, of love and of happy endings in abundance."
The contents of dusty accountants' ledgers rarely, if ever, provide source material for poetry, and no-one today would in all seriousness call an article 'The Romance of Figures', as the author of these words did. The Co-op, though, seemed to have the knack, at least back in 1950.
1 Ammanford Co-operative Society – the beginnings 2 The National Co-operative Movement – its beginnings 3 The Co-op in 2000 4 Ammanford Co-op Jubillee Booklet 1950 2. The National Co-operative Movement – its beginnings
What comes over very strongly from the formation of Ammanford Co-operative Society is the strong, almost evangelical, sense of idealism that fired their founding members. But this should hardly surprise us though, because the Co-operative Movement owed its beginnings to one Robert Owen, a nineteenth century Utopian Socialist. Owen was born in Newtown, Mid-Wales, and managed a factory run on socialist lines in the colony of New Lanark in Scotland. Robert Owen drew praise from no less than Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, with Engels describing Owen when he came on the scene in 1800 thus -
"At this juncture there came forward a reformer, a manufacturer 29 years old – a man of almost sublime, childlike simplicity of character, and at the same time one of the few born leaders of men."
In the industrial revolution most of Owen's class – the newly powerful bankers and industrialists – saw only chaos and confusion in the world and the opportunity of fishing in these troubled waters to make vast fortunes quickly. Owen saw in it instead the opportunity of putting his socialist theories into practice and so of bringing order out of chaos. He had already tried it with great success, as superintendent of more than 500 men in a Manchester factory. From 1800 to 1829 he directed the great cotton mill at New Lanark in Scotland as managing partner along the same lines, but with greater freedom of action and with a success that made him a European reputation. A population, originally consisting of the most diverse and, for the most part, demoralised elements, a population that gradually grew to 2,500, he turned into a model colony, in which drunkenness, police, magistrates, lawsuits, poor laws, charity, were unknown. And all this by simply placing people in conditions worthy of human beings, and especially by providing them with decent homes in the village that grew up around the factory, and carefully bringing up the rising generation of children. He was the founder of infant schools and introduced them first at New Lanark. At the age of two the children came to school, where, by all accounts they enjoyed themselves so much that they could scarcely be brought home again. (A far cry from 2000, I'm afraid, where parents often have to pay out of their own pockets to send children to playschools, with millions being unable to afford even that.)
Whilst Owen's competitors in business worked their people 13 or 14 hours a day, in New Lanark the working day was ten and a half hours a week. When a crisis in cotton stopped work for four months his workers received their full wages all the time. And with this his business more than doubled in value, and to the last yielded profits to its shareholders.
In spite of this Owen was not content. The existence which he secured for his workers was, in his eyes, still far from being worthy of human beings. As he said: "The people were slaves at my mercy" and the shareholders of the New Lanark factory were still far, far wealthier, from the dividends on their shares, than the workers who produced that wealth. And the shareholders didn't have to work even one hour a week for that let alone the ten and a half hours the factory workers did.
For Owen, it was to these workers therefore that the fruits of the new power brought by the industrial revolution belonged. The newly created, gigantic productive forces, until now only used to enrich individuals and to enslave the masses, offered to Owen the opportunity for a reconstruction of society.
Owen's advance in the direction of this, the common ownership of the wealth of a nation, was a turning point in his life. As long as he was simply a "philanthropist", a do-gooder giving away only his own money, he was rewarded with nothing but wealth, applause, honour and glory. But when he came out with his socialistic theories that was quite another thing. Once he became a threat to the established order by preaching redistribution of wealth, its full wrath fell upon him. Three obstacles to him seemed to block the path to social reform – private property, religion and the present form of marriage. He knew what confronted him if he attacked these – outlawry, excommunication from official society and the loss of his whole social position. And what he had foreseen happened. Banished from official society, with a press conspiracy against him, ruined by his unsuccessful experiments in America, he turned directly to the working class and continued working in its midst for thirty years. Every social movement, every real advance in England on behalf of the workers links itself to the name of Robert Owen. In 1819 he forced through, after five years of fighting, the first law limiting the hours of women and children in factories.
He was president in 1833 of the first Congress at which all Trade Unions of England united in a single association. This was quickly dissolved in 1834 because of hostility from employers and government but the concept became a permanent reality in 1869 when the Trades Union Congress (TUC) was born.
As transition measures to the complete communistic organisation of society, he introduced Co-operative Societies for retail trade and production – the Co-ops of our story. These have given proof to many, or at least strong hints, that the merchant and the manufacturer might even be socially quite unnecessary.
The founders of the Co-operative movement which started in Rochdale, Lancashire in 1844, and very soon spread throughout Lancashire, Yorkshire, Scotland and Wales, had a narrower vision than Robert Owen certainly, confining themselves to running non-profit shops owned by the shoppers themselves. But nonetheless the language of the founders of the movement reveals quite clearly that the vision that inspired them was of a socialist nature.
Ammanford Councillor W Hayzell writing in the 1950 commemorative booklet utters the following pronouncement -
"We are convinced that Co-operation in Ammanford will make its full contribution to Wales and the world in the next 50 years".
To Wales and the world, mark you; no mere villager this one. He continues -
"The immediate task is to develop consumers' Co-operation in all our areas to its fullest capacity. Who among us will dare to say that saturation point has been reached? Extensive Co-operatives means a sufficiency of branches, deliveries and services, in order to economically and efficiently serve our present and potential membership. Intensive Co-operatives means the securing of every possible pennyworth of trades from each Co-operative family. In short, trade per member."
The language so far is the grey, dry as dust jargon of the accountant – "fullest capacity", "saturation point", "extensive", "intensive", "sufficiency", "trade per member" – the eyelids very quickly start to droop and a cure for insomnia seems close to hand. But suddenly this address to "Wales and the world" leaps like a salmon, as they say, and launches into -
"Not only – Man gwyn draw – beautiful is the far-away place, but beauty and justice here in our midst with the dawning of the Co-operative Commonwealth.
'Byd myrdd o rhyfeddodau
Ar doriad boreu wawr.'
– There will be a multitude of wonders
At the dawning of the day.This we see to be Co-operation in all its fullness, dawning and shining, lighting the path ahead."
Whew! How sincere were these 1950 inheritors of Ammanford's Co-op movement it would be difficult to say, since language seems designed as much to disguise as to reveal thought. But there is at least a glimpse in the above words – poetry or blather, decide as you will – of Robert Owen, the man and his dream, who gave the Co-operative movement to "Wales and the world".
1 Ammanford Co-operative Society – the beginnings 2 The National Co-operative Movement – its beginnings 3 The Co-op in 2000 4 Ammanford Co-op Jubillee Booklet 1950 3. The Co-op in 2000
It seemed, in 1950 at least, with the Co-ops in Ammanford on the crest of a boom cycle not seen before or since, that these golden days would never end. And for Betws-born Jim Griffiths, MP for Llanelli, and government minister at the time of the Co-op Jubilee, it was even more than a golden age – it was proof that history was not aimless but had a definite purpose and even a direction which had come full circle. He writes in his introduction to the 1950 Jubilee booklet,
"In this same year the Labour Party celebrates its Jubilee, and we all rejoice at the unity that welds together into one team the Trade Unions, the Labour Party and the Co-operative Movement. In this year of Jubilee we remember with pride the part Wales has played in the development of our Movement. We remember how much we owe to the young Welsh lad, Robert Owen, who went from Newtown to New Lanark and became the father of British Co-operation, and to the Scots miner, James Keir Hardie, who came from Lanark to Merthyr Tydfil and thus laid the foundation of the Labour Party."
But what those early pioneers of Co-ops in Ammanford and especially Robert Owen would think of the Co-operative Movement of today, we neither know nor dare to think. On the TV programme "Newsnight" in January 1992 the head of the modern Co-operative Society was heard criticising bitterly those supermarkets who'd commenced Sunday trading in flagrant contravention of the law. His outrage was somewhat deflated, however, when he was quickly forced to admit that many Co-ops – yes you've guessed it – were also trading on Sunday themselves.
Today's Co-ops no longer have members or give dividends and what was formally a crusading "Movement" is now just another supermarket chain like all the rest. Its workers are faced with the same low pay and the same long and un-social hours as the workers of other supermarkets. They've even removed the name "Co-operative Society" from their shops. They're either called "Leo's" or "Pioneer", as if they ashamed, or at the very least, confused about their identity. True, the name "Pioneer" has some historical merit, as it was the name that the first Co-ops in Rochdale called themselves. But who knows that now?
That those first people who gathered on Ammanford Square in 1900 were true heirs of Robert Owen's dream of a better world there is no doubt at all. It had men of the quality of Edgar Bassett, the General Manager of Ammanford Co-op until 1949, described as a "true socialist", who was the prime mover in the creation of the "Pick and Shovel" working men's club in Ammanford.
The modern Co-op, however, is quite a different beast altogether, a pale imitation indeed of the creation of those early pioneers of "Co-operation", as they called their fledgling movement. The Co-operative Society, through its political committee and bank, still retains those links with the Labour Party and Trade Unions that Jim Griffiths talked of (the Co-op is allocated one member on the Labour Party's National Executive), but it no longer has any roots in the community in the same way as the old Co-op.
Something of the idealism of the early Co-operative movement can be glimpsed in the pages of Ammanford's Jubilee Booklet, which we reproduce in full below, its pages everywhere bursting with the hope and optimism that accompanied the post-war Labour government, at least in its earliest years. And if all this seems ridiculous to us today, then maybe it is we who have lost something valuable along the way.
1 Ammanford Co-operative Society – the beginnings 2 The National Co-operative Movement – its beginnings 3 The Co-op in 2000 4 Ammanford Co-op Jubillee Booklet 1950 -----------------------------------------------
FIFTY YEARS OF SERVICE AND PROGRESS
AMMANFORD CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETY
JUBILEE BOOKLET 1950
(Text version)4. AMMANFORD CO-OP JUBILEE BOOKLET (CONTENTS)
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellMESSAGE FROM
The Right Honourable James Griffiths, M.P.,
MINISTER OF NATIONAL INSURANCE, 1945-50IT IS WITH pleasure that I send my warmest greetings and congratulations to your Society on the attainment of your Jubilee. I remember the early days when the first small store was known as Siop Ni. And that is what it has been to the people of Ammanford and district; Ein Siop Ni through all kinds of vicissitudes.
.....I join with you in paying tribute to the pioneers who founded the store 50 years ago, and to all those who have served the Society with such devotion ever since.
.....In this same year the Labour Party celebrates its Jubilee, and we all rejoice at the unity that welds together into one team the Trade Unions, the Labour Party and the Co-operative Movement. In this year of Jubilee we remember with pride the part Wales has played in the development of our Movement. We remember how much we owe to the young Welsh lad, Robert Owen, who went from Newtown to New Lanark and became the Father of British Co-operation, and to the Scots miner, James Keir Hardie, who came from Lanark to Merthyr Tydfil and thus laid the foundation of the Labour Party.
.....Let us who have inherited the Movement they built resolve to be worthy of them by rededicating ourselves in this year of Jubilee to the cause of the people. " Llongyfarchiadau Gwresog – a Llwyddianti'r Achos Gydweithredol."
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellLOOK BACKWARDS
by
IESTYN WILLIAMSA HALF-CENTURY has passed since the founding of the Co-operative Movement in Ammanford. It is interesting to follow its history and watch its growth from the days when some of us thought it would be a good thing to establish such a movement in our town.
.....Mr. J. C. Shaw was the first to be moved by this idea. He had been a member of the Co-operative Society at Wigan, Lancashire, before he became an official of a colliery at Bettws. I heard him say constantly what a blessing such a movement would be to the working-men of this neighbourhood.
.....One Saturday night I met Mr. Henry James, a tinworker, on the Square at Ammanford. After some conversation we decided to call together, on the following Friday night, all interested in our ideas. The meeting was to be held at the " Telegraph Hotel."
.....Twenty-two people assembled, and we determined wholeheartedly that we should establish a Co-operative Society at Ammanford. We then immediately proceeded to choose officers. Evan Pugh, a railway worker, was elected President; J. C. Shaw, Treasurer; Henry James, Secretary. Then we arranged to hold the next meeting in the Ivorites Hall, and that we would invite Mr. J. F. James, of the C.W.S., Cardiff; Mr. J. R. Williams, of Llanelly, and Mr. David Lewis, Treboeth, to address the meeting.
.....After hearing inspiring speeches by the three speakers at the Ivorites Hall meeting, the idea of forming a society was strengthened, and without delay a Committee was formed to facilitate the project.
.....Mr. J. F. James came to the following meeting, and after much discussion it was decided that we should accept names of members, on the condition that they contribute £5 each as a share in order to form an Ammanford Society. Over sixty came forward willingly to join in the venture, and the majority of them placed their £5 offerings in the hands of the Treasurer.
.....Efforts were made to search for a suitable place in which to open the Stores, and a building on Bancyrynn was chosen. Here stands one of the Society's premises to-day. A shop-store was opened at the beginning of June, 1900, and Mr. J. Griffiths, son of the Aberdare Society's then President, was chosen as Manager.
.....There has been much discussion as to the identity of the first customer or customers. It is rather difficult to settle this matter but it is safe to say that Mrs. David George, of Bettws, and Mrs. Iestyn Williams were the two first to purchase goods across the counter of the new store.
.....The new movement encountered many difficulties in the early stages, and some of the traders of the place went as far as to offer 2s. in the £ discount to their customers rather than see them joining the Co-operative Society.
.....The warmth and enthusiasm of some of the first customers cooled, but-through sincere and strenuous effort-the Committee succeeded in persuading the majority to return to trade at the Stores. Mr. Griffiths, the Manager, did not care for his place in Ammanford and he returned to Aberdare. Mr. Henry James was chosen in his place, and Mr. Daniel John Higgs as Secretary.
..... Under their supervision the Society did well. It was necessary to enlarge the , buildings to meet with the needs of trade. The owner was Colonel Morris, Brynffin, and ! it was decided to ask him to sell the building to the Society. There was no money in hand with the young Society to pay for it, but they had a clear vision and unwavering faith in the Co-operative Movement.
.....Two of the Committee approached Colonel Morris, and may all praise and honour be given to his name, he sold it to them for the same price as he had himself paid for the property, viz. £200. The next day after his kind promise he refused £500 for it from some of the influential l business people in the town.
..... Sometimes customers ran into debt, but they had no peace from the Committee. i The Secretary and other Committee members would go from door-to-door to persuade ! defaulters to clear their debts, and success followed upon their urgent efforts.
..... The need again arose to enlarge the accommodation, and it was decided to convert two rooms into one for this purpose. Energetic members, and a willing Committee, enabled this to be done in a week without receiving a penny for their labours. It was adequate pay enough, for them, to see the Society progressing.
..... At first the Manager carried the goods around to the customers' houses, but this became too great a burden. For a little while John Watts was engaged to do this work. But his horse and gambo were very slow. After much thought, owing to lack of funds, it was agreed to buy a horse and second-hand cart in Cardiff.
.....Councillor David George was appointed to strike the bargain, and it is interesting to note the price he paid! £20 for horse, cart, harness and whip! Great was the pride of the Society in possessing such a horse and cart. Mr. James Hutchings was the haulier, but it was not possible to procure a stable for the horse, so great was the opposition to Co-operation in the place. There was nothing to be done but to build a new stable. The Committee again undertook this work.
..... Mr. D. J. Higgs, who had been such a successful Secretary, moved to Swansea in order to open a bookshop there. Mr. James Hutchings, the haulier, was now appointed Secretary in Mr. Higgs' place; The trade steadily increased and the Stores again became too small for the demands made upon it. After much consideration the Society ventured to erect a beautiful building on Bancyrynn. And, from the days of the first venture Ammanford Co-operative Society has grown to be one of the most successful in South and West Wales.
.....Allow me, in the ripeness of age, to extend my blessing upon the work and to wish it well. Its inception was a great adventure, but it has paid its way a hundredfold.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellA BRIEF HISTORY
UNTIL THE YEAR 1750, when that change which is summed up in the term "Industrial Revolution" set in, Wales was largely a pastoral and agricultural country, with small towns serving as centres of local trade and commerce.
..... Of the Welsh counties, Carmarthenshire was the most considerable and important. But, apart from its farming products, the county produced great religious and ethical movements before the Co-operative urge was felt. The names of Rev. Griffith Jones, Llanddowror, in connection with evangelism and short-period "circulating" schools; Thomas Charles, of Bala, a native of Carmarthenshire, who imported the Sunday School from England; William Williams, the hymnologist, of Pantycelyn, and many more, all speak to this day of the highest motives and inspiration in education, literature and social uplift.
..... With the eighteenth century, modern industry came to our county with its tremendous impact, and the industrial belt with its anthracite mines, tinworks, &c., was attracting a rapid influx of population from many parts of Wales and England. Ammanford, a typical mining town combining some agricultural interests, grew quickly during this period, and by the time when our brief survey begins was substantially the town a visitor sees to-day. One notes with relief the wide streets as compared with the narrow highways and roads of the steam-coal valleys of South Wales.
..... In the year 1900 the country which had produced the great Robert Owen heard a great deal of the growth of the Co-operative Movement which had, since 1844, consolidated itself in Lancashire and Yorkshire with some notable Scottish growths. (London and the South of England was at this time largely a "Co-operative desert ";) Cwmbach, Aberdare, had its Co-operative Society since the year 1868, and a number of other mining valley Societies were born in the decade beginning 1880. Then, in 1900, the great Annual Parliament of Co-operation, the Congress, came to Cardiff in order to discuss the business of its two million members in the Park Hall. There is no building in Cardiff today big enough to hold the representatives of our ten million co-operators!
..... The President of the 1900 Congress looked back on "a marvellous stride." The Mayor of Cardiff spoke of "startling figures" of Co-operative progress. And at this time South and West Wales was awakening to the benefits which Co-operation could bestow upon its people. Ammanford, as we shall see, had its Co-operative enthusiasts and missionaries, planning to plant firmly a society of mutual aid and social amelioration in the town.
.....Shall we here notice the difference between the Pioneers of Rochdale and the Ammanford Pioneers? Rochdale Co-operation was born of the abject poverty and misery of the sore-afflicted Lancashire people. Their capital had to be built up by means of hard-earned twopenny subscriptions; the founders of Ammanford Society lived in a fairly prosperous town which could speedily provide 60 members prepared to subscribe £5 each as individual shareholdings. Nevertheless, the working-people – miners, tin-workers, &c., with a sprinkling of railwaymen – felt keenly the need of mutual trading in their midst. By whom was the movement to be commenced? Could Ammanford produce men of foresight, courage, and determination, in order to plant the seed of co-operation in a soil so manifestly ready? It could and did, as we shall now show.
..... As Mr. Iestyn Williams clearly states in his foreword, it was the Welsh fiery impetuosity combined with English hard-headed determination which started the ball rolling. Iestyn was very friendly with Mr. J. C. Shaw, a colliery official who had seen the practical benefits of Co-operation in his home town of Wigan. Shaw was so filled and imbued with his ideas that he talked of them daily. We may well apply the words of Scripture to the many meetings of the friends and their weighty conversations: "Did not our hearts burn within us ?" Clearly something had to happen.
..... Hence that meeting on Ammanford Square, when Henry James, the tinplate worker, joined the two friends, making a trio prepared to do and dare for Co-operation Hence the convening of a meeting in the "Telegraph Hotel" on March 3rd, when the first real step was taken. Hence the further meeting at the Ivorites Hall, preceded by the distribution of handbills through the town. Things were moving! Could they secure popular backing?
..... Mr. J. F. James, of the Co-operative Wholesale Society, Cardiff, addressed the Ivorites Hall meeting. Many of us still remember J. F. J. as an honoured veteran, loved by all South Wales co-operators. Mr. James came prepared with pass books and a register upon which to place prospective members' names. Would his faith be rewarded? Of the 50 to 60 people present the majority, after listening carefully to Mr. James and other speakers, enrolled as members. Many of these were prepared to subscribe £5 each. The Minute Book shows that on May 5th, 1900, the amount actually received as Share Capital was £108 from 39 members.
..... Now that we see things are fairly under way, we ought to record the names of those present at the "Telegraph" meeting which first set the wires humming: Evan Pugh, H. Williams, H. James, Iestyn Williams, Morgan George, J. C. Shaw, David John, Evan Llewellyn. These were joined as a Provisional Committee, at the Ivorites Hall, by Messrs. John Roderick, John Co-oper Davies and others. At the first General Meeting of the Society on May 5th, 1900, when Evan Pugh (previously pro. tem. Chairman) was elected President, the following were elected as the first fully constituted Committee of the Ammanford Society:-Messrs. David George, Iestyn Williams, W. H. Davies, John Roderick, H. Williams, D. H. Allen, John Thomas, Thomas Cole, Thomas Davies.
.....The writer of this very compressed summary had the privilege of long conversations with those two stalwarts William Cormack and Iestyn Williams about these early days. A prominent grocer, it seems, passing by when the painter was placing the sign on the Bank-y-rynn premises, told the painter to put on after Co-operative Society, "For three months only." Fifty years have passed and Co-operation still flourishes in Ammanford.
.....The date of opening was in the early summer of 1900, June 14th. The town population was roughly about one-half what it is to-day. Many people were tied by debt and circumstances to grocers and other tradesmen but decided to try the new system. Owing to rosy promises of an equal discount or dividend by the traders fearful of losing custom, some converts did waver, but the Committee went round reassuring the weaklings.
.....Colonel Morris certainly deserves the high commendation of present-day members. As previously related, he refused to yield to the blandishments and inflated offers of private traders and interested parties, and kept to the word of a gentleman. Mr. J. F. James, of the C.W.S., Cardiff, kept the new Society well stocked with goods as ordered and helped in every possible way. Sometimes cheques had to be drawn in faith, but in the end the money would be in the bank in time to save the credit of the Society.
.....The Society had taken out shares in the Co-operative Wholesale Society in the beginning, and later (in 1908) joined the Co-operative Union Ltd., Manchester. Ammanford has always been faithful to the great national Co-operative institutions. And in 1921 and 1926 it was comforting to know that the strength of British Co-operators was behind the sorely-tried societies in mining areas.
.....Home baking was very popular in Ammanford in the old days and housewives were very proud of their home-baked loaf. Some customers preferred, however, to purchase bread and arrangements had to be made in order to supply them. But the need of a Co-operative bakery soon became apparent, and at long last, in 1916, Mr. Iestyn Williams had the honour of declaring the new buildings at Tirydail open for business.
.....Social events took place from time to time as the Society's business increased and funds were available. The Annual Tea Parties were very popular indeed. Many members today will remember the sports and fun, especially the women's tug-of-war, which invariably provided great enjoyment. A one pound pat of butter was the usual prize for ladies. By today we may surmise it would be more popular still!
.....We may doubtless see the influence of the ladies also in the fact that the first department in addition to grocery was drapery, which was reasonably successful in a short time. During the past 50 years the womenfolk have become distinctly Co-operatively-conscious. Their part in putting Ammanford on the Co-operative map must not remain without our very sincere tribute in this Jubilee Year. Yet we have no Women's Guild here! Should not this lack be rectified soon? (Note – As this is being written we hear of a meeting being held in order to establish an Ammanford Guild, with Mrs. Markwell, of Newport, as speaker.)
.....The work of the early unpaid Secretaries must be considered worthy of mention. When the present writer asked Mr. D. J. Higgs about his "salary" he made a very significant gesture, as if to say that he wanted none, expected none and got none! The members realised his worth and when he removed to Swansea presented him with a gold watch and chain which he still treasures.
.....Many amusing anecdotes are related of the early struggles. Can we not preserve at least some of them? Mr. lestyn Williams remembers giving the first outfitting order. It was a suit of clothes, which when it arrived seemed "to fit where it touched" Then there was the week-end papering incident – or shall we call it the paperchase! Messrs. Shaw, lestyn Williams and others had to get the shop cleared, cleaned and papered ready for the Monday morning reopening. After the amateur operations had been proceeding very favourably, in fact almost completed, the whole mass of sticky paper came down en bloc on the enthusiastic paperhangers! One member, Mr. Tom Morgan, was completely buried in the paper avalanche! It was the strangest "fall" that the miners present had ever seen.
.....Soon the premises at Bank-y-rynn became too small for the increasing volume of business, although it had been altered several times. Plans were prepared for new premises by Mr. Taliesin Rees, of Swansea, who found the Committee so interested that he had to obtain a blackboard and point out the salient features one by one. These premises opened in 1905, was an all-department store, and did great credit to the young Society. It is still in good condition today and is used for drapery and outfitting, boots, furnishing and hardware. This emporium, together with the adjoining Margaret Street shops, still presents an imposing corner-block, showing how well the pioneers chose their site.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellEVOLUTION OF SHOP LIFE
by
Mr. H. STOKES, General ManagerMANY WORDS HAVE been written of the deeds and achievements of the pioneers in the Co-operative Movement, and it would be unfair to make a comparison with the early days of Rochdale trading and to-day's modern methods.
..... Let us, therefore, picture in our minds the differences between then and now.
..... Shops were very small, poorly lighted and the assistants worked long hours for very low wages. The weekly half-holiday was not even compulsory. It was common practice for shops to be open until midnight, goods being delivered in the early hours of the morning.
..... Most of the goods in the shops were bought in bulk. Sugar in 2cwt. bags, treacle in 5 cwt. barrels, tea in cases of 100 lb. each. Bacon arrived in large wooden boxes up to 4 or 5 cwt. Dried fruits in boxes, uncleaned. What a different story today! New methods of trading. Shops where customers may serve themselves are rapidly replacing the old stores. Shop hours are limited by law and, in our movement, to 44 hours per week. Co-operators pioneered the weekly half-holiday which is now legal and universal. Some Societies close their shops on Saturday afternoons.
..... Goods are, for the most part, pre-packed, and we can look forward to the time when all goods sold in food shops will be packed before they reach the stores. No more cleaning dried fruit or washing bacon covered in salt or slime !-imagine washing this on a cold winter's morning. Splitting 70 lb. boxes of sticky dates was usually a task for the young apprentice. It cannot be truthfully stated that he enjoyed it! Dates are now sold wrapped in attractive and hygienic cellophane packets.
..... Machines for slicing bacon (at one time the only form of "modern entertainment" in our villages), bread slicing and wrapping machines, cash registers, with adding machines and typewriters, are now commonplace things in business and are a real necessity for modern trade.
.....Looking back, we realise that workers in shops, especially in the grocery section, were indeed "tradesmen" in their craft, skilled in the many arts of the trade, such as flat paper- wrapping, the making of paper "cups," fine weighing, &c. This aspect of shop life, I regret to say, is passing away rapidly, but looking to the modern methods of business we must admit great progress has been made.
..... Much more could be written on this interesting and fascinating subject, but space, I am sorry to say, will not permit. Let us, therefore, renew our energies and redouble our efforts in this year of Jubilee, acknowledging our indebtedness to the pioneers and founders of the past and resolving to do our part in bringing to the notice of our fellow-men the inestimable benefits of Co-operation.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellPROGRESS AND EXPANSION
TRUE Co-opERATION, LIKE charity, begins at home, but cannot and must not remain there. Families outside Ammanford began to trade at the stores. People were talking favourably in all the neighbouring places of the Society's growing repute. Its goods, services, financial standing and the ever-welcome dividend became notable features of Ammanford life.
.....It became obvious that the benefits of Co-operation could not be confined to Ammanford alone. The Committee made the first move in what was to become a programme of expansion by opening a branch stores at Glanamman. This led, inevitably, to further demands for branches, Tycroes being the second. Then followed Llandebie, Bettws, Blaenau, Garnant and Saron. The Central Grocery is at Wind Street, and there is also an Allied Emporium at College Street. Butchery is provided for at Margaret Street and Glanamman.
.....The Butchery Delivery Van is also rendering useful services to members at other branches. Pasteurised milk from the Ffairfach C.W.S. Creamery is a daily and popular feature at Ammanford and four branches. It is hoped to extend this hygienic milk service as opportunity presents itself.
.....With the passing of the years and increasing trade the need becomes more apparent for the improving, enlarging and modernising of existing premises. The Committee have secured the approval of plans for extensions, &c., at Wind Street, where a Self-Service system will be an up-to-date feature. Other improvements will be necessary as building restrictions are relaxed.
.....A complete Funeral Furnishing Service is regarded now as an essential Co-operative department. Ammanford is giving entire satisfaction in this. Here we should mention the benefits of the Collective Life Assurance Scheme, under the provisions of which the Society has paid out thousands of pounds in benefits to members in the hour of need.
Ammanford Society has always tried to live up to its title of "Co-operative" Evidence of this may be seen in its participation in the late West Wales Co-operative Inter-trading Scheme. This made for good neighbourliness with other Societies and a full range of services. It is also a shareholder and trading member of the West Wales Boot Repairing Society Ltd.
.....In the wider field of Co-operative production, &c., the Society is associated as a shareholder with Ideal Clothiers Ltd., National Co-operative Chemists Ltd., Swansea Printers Ltd., and the Co-operative Press Ltd., &c.
..... It is also an Agent for the Co-operative Wholesale Society's Bank, Manchester. Here we see the fulfilment of early dreams of financial stability in the notable fact that two Local Authorities in the area transact their banking business through the Society of which we have traced such humble beginnings in 1900. The two Councils are the Ammanford Urban District and the Cwmamman Urban District. The members of the Ammanford Society may also participate in the C.W.S. By-Post Service and the Co-operative National Membership Scheme.
.....The Society's financial status in the movement is high – in fact, has been since its teething troubles of the early days were overcome. True there were anxious times during and after the industrial upheavals of 1921 and 1926, but these temporary setbacks were overcome and retrieved by good management and the members' loyalty. The very substantial sums shown as investments in the C.W.S. Ltd., Government securities, &c., together with loans and deposits at bank, show a very healthy state of affairs. Readers of this brochure are particularly requested to note the systematic writing down, by Depreciation Account, of the Society's property. Property originally valued at £17,924 now stands at a nominal figure of £7,995 in the current Balance Sheet. Altogether, the Society is well-equipped financially to meet the impact of the coming years, whatever they may hold in store for Ammanford and district.
.....In these pages it is fitting that we should pay tribute to those past officials of the Society who have rendered excellent service. Some, alas, have passed over the Great Divide. In particular we would mention the late Mr. Edgar Bassett, General Manager for 27 years. Edgar served on National Executives of the movement and had a high place in the National Co-operative Managers' Association for many years. Mr. J. W. Jones, late Secretary, will be remembered by many, and recent departmental losses are fresh in the minds of all readers.
.....In the present officials, Messrs. J. A. Thomas, Secretary and H. Stokes, General Manager, the Society has efficient, loyal and trusted servants. They can be relied upon, with the Co-operation of the Management Board and the staff, to lead the Society on to further progress and victories. Mr. Thomas has not only a sense of the " Romance of Figures " but also a keen appreciation of accountancy for its utility value. Mr. Stokes rightly points to his 13 to 14 times annual stock-turnover as evidence of his sound judgment and leadership. We naturally and sincerely regret the fact that Mr. Rufus Evans is no longer with us – he had a long period of Committee-service and was President for 10 years – but in Mr. W. L. Hitchings, the newly-appointed President, we may justly and confidently expect a worthy successor.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellFINANCIAL RESULTS
AMMANFORD SOCIETY IS now in its 50th year; the amount of share capital subscribed in 1900 by the founder-members was £108. Its assets were limited to a small stock of goods on the shelves of its rented shop. In our Jubilee Year the members' Share Capital stands at £198,530. 3s. 0d., and Loans in Small Savings Bank at £6,659. 19s. 6d., with General Reserve Fund £3,098. 18s. 7d. The Society's assets include property originally costing £17,924 and now standing at the depreciated figure of £7,995 ; investments totalling £188,460. 8s. 10d. in Co-operative and Government securities, and a balance in current account at Bank of £10,185. 14s. 3d.
.....Interest is paid at 3 per cent to members on share capital and at 2 1/2 per cent on Savings Bank deposits. The Society has more than sufficient capital to finance its present trading operations and also to provide for future developments. The capital is being used to full advantage, as is shown by the current Balance Sheet. It is surely a great achievement to be doing an annual trade of nearly £252,000 with buildings at the nominal figure of £7,995 only.
.....Members are encouraged to increase their capital holdings. In saving for themselves and their families they are also providing the means for financing their Society's services, and more – to provide more and better services for themselves. Naturally, the easiest way for members to increase their holdings is by not withdrawing their dividend. Much of the Society's capital strength has been built up in this way, and the sound financial policy practised over a long period by the Society means and ensures that every member's savings are secure and easily available in case of need.
.....The unquestionable material advantages of Co-operation are shown by the fact that in the past 10 years alone no less a sum than £234,329 has been returned to members as dividend on purchases and interest on moneys invested. The price policy of the Society has to be competitive, and dividend is paid on all price-controlled articles. Trade union rates of wages and salaries have been paid throughout the years.
.....Naturally, and rightly, the Committee have to study carefully financial considerations when opening new branches or acquiring buildings and lands. This is sound policy. The writer of these pages may, however, be allowed to express the hope – and indeed conviction – that when the circumstances allow and conditions are ripe the town of Llandilo will have its Co-operative branch in order to extend the range and influence of Co-operative trade and services. Other areas may also need attention in view of industrial developments.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellPASSING CLOUDS
IF THE SUN was always shining how should we appreciate the blessings of summer? There have been times in the history of Ammanford Society when everything seemed gloomy. Present times were bad, and the future insecure. The table of progress figures at the end of this brochure shows how strikes, lock-outs, depression and un-employment dealt some hard blows at the growing Society. Indeed, at times, its growth was checked and its leadership frustrated and baffled. But, like Robert Browning, the leaders of Ammanford Co-operation have been :- "Baffled to fight better."
.....The 1921 coalminers' stoppage and the depression which followed make a notable chapter in the Society's history. The unprecedented length of the stoppage, together with the amazing slump in prices, &c., shook even old-established business concerns to their foundations, and the 21-year-old Ammanford Society had to brace itself and stand firm to meet the shock.
.....By the year 1922 the full effects of the trouble began to be apparent. In the Report for the 39 weeks ended January 4th, 1922, the Committee offered "a full, frank and, we think, convincing statement" of the position to members. £2,500 had been taken off the stock as a result of price reductions; trade had decreased considerably as the result of the poverty of members; thousands of pounds' worth of credit had been allowed to miners' families, and as a result of all this there was a Suspense Account of £3,500. The Committee were averse to the suggested revaluation of properties as an "undesirable expedient" and preferred to go steadily forward, having effected "certain economies" in the running of the business.
.....By October, 1922, the Society was once again showing a trading surplus, but a very small amount, which was sufficient to pay a dividend to members of 4d in the £. Withdrawals of capital "had not been unreasonable," But some members had to be reminded of their obligations: "We fed the people who had no money to pay. It was a kindly act and prevented serious trouble. Your Society took the risk." Members were asked to reciprocate the Society's generosity in the same spirit and on the same scale.
..... In 1923 the Society was paying a 1 shilling dividend and improving its position. By May, 1924, increased sales were reported and a dividend of 1s. 6d in the £. In 1925 the first quarter-century was celebrated with a "magnificent increase in trade" and a 2s. dividend. But members still owed the society £5,000 for goods and 1921 legacies still existed, as shown by the Suspense Account.
..... Then, in May, 1926, the Committee had once again to admit, "We are in the fight for a living wage. We appeal to every member to carefully weigh up his or her demands on the Society, so as to keep our resources in hand as long as possible." A cautious dividend of 1s. 9d. in the £ was paid. That historic struggle lives in the memories of all South Wales people. And on November 1st, 1926, the Committee had to say: "Sales reduced, debts increased." Members were told: "We have shown confidence in your loyalty and faithfulness to the extent of £21,822." But the Suspense Account was down to £2,300 and a dividend of 1s. in the £ was paid.
..... "Depression" is the operative word in 1927 and 1928. "Work slack and unsettled"; "Very difficult conditions" ; "Continued depression" ; "Anxiously waiting for better times" ."Severe conditions continue"; "Most of our members are unemployed" – these are the phrases which recur in the Committee's Reports until the year 1930, when although members' debts were over £20,000 there was cash in bank and a dividend of 1.s. 3d. in the ££. "Trading results are satisfactory and encouraging." Clouds were passing! And, with the years, the Society's position gradually improved until we see the proud status of this Ammanford Jubilee Year. All honour to the officials, staff, Committee and members who were faithful all the way through the tunnel!
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellTHE ROMANCE OF FIGURES
by
Mr. J. A. THOMAS
General SecretaryHOW MANY PEOPLE have ever thought or imagined the wonderful story which is interwoven in the pattern of figures of log books, ledgers and balance sheets tucked away in the dusty corners of the office?
.....Yet if one cares to consider and give the matter a little serious thought one will soon realise that a close inspection of these books will undoubtedly give to us a true picture of the history, not only of the business, which is in itself interesting and valuable, but also a clear and vivid picture of the life of the people who dwell in the neighbourhood.
.....And so, if a true picture is required of the growth and development of the Ammanford Society, or even the history of the Amman Valley during the last half-century, no source will prove so fruitful or produce such rich results as the musty, hide-bound books in the Secretary's office. Here will stand revealed the simple truth: naked, untarnished and unadorned.
..... From the early balance sheets we get a picture of unskilled and inexperienced men launching into the unknown and almost forbidden realms of commerce. We can glean from these early accounts their errors and miscalculations which more than once brought their frail little craft to the brink of disaster, but with stout hearts at the helm and eyes fixed on the Utopia beyond, they carried on until they steered into calmer waters.
.....As we turn the pages we find pictures of strikes-some of short duration, others long I and protracted-all faithfully recorded in the balance sheets of the Society. Then we have I wars, slumps and booms, shortage of manpower, unemployment, and migration of labour. All are registered on this very sensitive instrument, the balance sheet.
.....Yet we must remember, these are general pictures-pictures in the mass which do not record human joys and sorrows! If you want real drama, romance, and stark tragedy, then we must turn to the ledgers. These deal with individuals, and here you find pictures, some frightening but some warm and full of the milk of human kindness.
.....Pictures of people fighting against poverty, unemployment and discord-people who laboured in vain to make two ends meet – and people worn out by worry and strain who came to an untimely end. Pictures of parents who gave all, who sacrificed all, who lived without the comforts and even necessities of life in order to give their children a better start.
.....However, it should be borne in mind that all the pictures are not set with a darkened background; the valley is not altogether a place of gloom, although it nestles under the foot of the Black Mountain. Song and laughter can always be heard, and this care-free happiness is duly recorded in the ledgers. Yes, we have illustrations here of loyalty, of love, and of happy endings in abundance.
.....Surely there is no need to pursue this topic any further. However romantic and exciting fiction can be, there is nothing which can reveal the innermost secrets of a whole community, locality or neighbourhood better than these long columns of figures filed at the office here.
Message from The Right Honourable James Griffiths, MP
Look Backwards, by Iestyn Williams
A Brief History
Evolution of Shop Life, by Mr. H. Stokes, General Manager
Progress and Expansion
Financial Results
Passing Clouds
The Romance of Figures, by Mr. J. A. Thomas, General Secretary
Epilogue and The Future, by Councillor W. HazellEPILOGUE AND THE FUTURE
By Councillor W. HAZELL
President of the Ynysybwl
Co-operative Society Ltd.,
Author of the Jubilee BrochureWE COMMENCED THIS brochure by looking backwards, and now – after travelling hopefully through 50 years of Co-operative history in Ammanford – we look to the curtained future. A half-century of effort lies behind. We now have a heritage of experience and a tradition of success. Will not this stand us in good stead for the coming years?
.....We have to live worthy of our founders of 1900, and our undisputed debt to the past can only be repaid by present and future constancy and Co-operative loyalty. Committee, officials and membership, this trinity of Co-operative builders must stand united in these changing times of trading conditions.
.....Our aim as a movement is high. Nothing less than the reconstruction of industry, commerce and social life on those principles of equity which will afford opportunity to every individual in the State to live his or her life at its highest and best. We are convinced that co-operation in Ammanford will make its full contribution to Wales and the World in the next 50 years.
.....The immediate task is to develop consumers' Co-operation in all our areas to its fullest capacity. Who among us will dare to say that saturation-point has been reached? Extensive Co-operation means a sufficiency of branches, deliveries and services, in order to economically and efficiently serve our present and potential membership. Intensive Co-operation means the securing of every possible pennyworth of trade from each Co-operative family. In short, trade per member.
.....To these agreed desirable ends we direct the attention of all readers of this modest synopsis. With grateful tributes to our founder-pioneers; with thankful recognition of past and present officials, staff, and committee-members; and the supreme loyalty and faithfulness of our members at all branches, we rejoice in our 50th Jubilee Celebrations and look forward with confidence to the coming years in the spirit of service."Bid Ben, Bid Bont" (He that would be a chief, let him be a bridge)
Not only – Man gwyn draw – beautiful is the far-away place, but beauty and justice here in our midst with the dawning of the Co-operative Commonwealth.
"Bydd myrdd o rhyfeddodau
Ar doriad boreu wawr."There will be a multitude of wonders
At the dawning of the day.This we see to be Co-opferation in all its fullness, dawning and shining, lighting the path ahead.
Branches in 1950
College Street and Wind Street (Ammanford), Glanamman, Tycroes, Llandebie, Betws, Blaenau, Garnant, Saron.Bakery – Tirydail
Butchery (and Van Deliveries) – Margaret Street, (Ammanford),Staff
Ammanford Staff in 1900 .....1
Present Staff in 1950 ........81Membership
1900 - 39
1950 - 3,519Vehicles and Transport
1900 ...ONE
£ 1950 ...Motor Vehicles 11Jubilee Year Sales Target, 1950 - £300,000
The best means of celebrating the Jubilee is by each member increasing their target by 5s. 6d. per week. This will mean hitting the "JUBILEE TARGET."
Decade 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950
Date this page last updated: October 5, 2010
