Conwy grave William Hughes

conwy_grave_william_hughesWilliam Hughes (d.1883)

conwy_william_hughesWilliam Hughes was deputy constable of Conwy Castle and the first mayor of Conwy Town Council.

For centuries, the town was administered by a corporation but in 1877 it fell into line with the reforms of the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. Queen Victoria granted the town a new charter, and the corporation was replaced with a democratically elected town council.

The council’s first elections were held on 17 March 1877. At its first meeting, a week later, the council unanimously elected William Hughes as mayor. On the right you can see part of the large portrait of him which was painted by John Dawson Watson (buried nearby) and now hangs in the Guildhall.

William hailed from Llanrwst and qualified as a solicitor in 1832. He later established a practice and residence in Castle Street, Conwy. Among his clients were the area’s wealthiest families, including the Mostyn, Erskine and Bulkeley families.

He was the corporation’s legal adviser for its last 45 years. He was clerk to local magistrates, the workhouse and the Commissioners of Taxes. He was involved in legislation to improve Llandudno and construct Marine Drive around the Great Orme. His trainees included Henry Dutton, who went on to practise in London’s Chancery Lane and is also buried in this cemetery.

William was described as one of the oldest practising solicitors in North Wales before his death, aged 80, in 1883. He was buried, according to his wishes, next to the Rev Morgan Morgan, Conwy’s vicar for more than 30 years. Both men had moved to Conwy on exactly the same day!

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