Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
NB: also see the MWSRG Subject Guide on the Armed Forces, and Tyne and
Wear Archive Service’s subject guides on individual industries and political
papers
Introduction
The National Archives of the United Kingdom (London) holds the majority of Crown
(government) papers relating to military operations, security, strategic policy, and the
civil service. This includes the papers of the Cabinet and its Committees, War Office,
Home Office, Secretaries of State, Foreign Office/Commonwealth Office, the
Intelligence and Security Services, and the Ministries of Food, Munitions, Agriculture
etc. The National Archives website offers guidance on searching these materials
here. Outlines on political party archives are available through the Political Parties
and Parliamentary Archives Group (PPPAG UK).
More materials are gradually becoming available online, but they only represent a
small minority of the material available in archives. A subscription is required to see
some online materials. Political documents currently available online through
university libraries include,
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Acts of the Privy Council 1542-1631
British Library Images Online (with the Georeferencer interactive map
program).
Census Records (1841-1911)
Colonial State Papers (1574-1737)
Historic Hansard (official reports of Parliamentary debates)
House of Commons and House of Lords Journals
Medieval Parliamentary Rolls
Parliamentary Papers (1688-)
Records of the Stormont, Northern Ireland (1921-1972)
Statutes of the Realm 1608-1701)
The Cabinet Papers (1915-82)
This guide demonstrates the range of materials held in the north-east area. Please
refer to Access2Archives and to individual archives’ catalogues for more information.
Access restrictions apply to local political material. Please check with the archive or
library.
Abbreviations used in this guide
Beamish: People’s Collection, Beamish
BRO: Berwick Record Office
DRO: Durham County Record Office
NRO: Northumberland County Record Office
TEES: Teesside Archives
TWAS: Tyne and Wear Archives Service
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
Local Councils
Elected county councils were established in 1888. The county areas were subdivided
into municipal and metropolitan boroughs, urban and rural districts, and smaller civil
parishes. All had their own councils. Attempts to change these boundaries were
politically contentious and strongly resisted. The most significant re-arrangement
took place in 1972 under the Local Government Bill. County archives hold the
records of all of the historic councils. Many of the smaller council authority records
have been incorporated into the larger council collections. Council Committees
Minutes can demonstrate political divisions that existed within local government.
Only the local government areas kept at the TWAS and NRO are included here.
Durham County Record Office (DRO) has a similarly large collection, with borough,
district and civil parish records for areas of Gateshead, Darlington, Stockton and
north Yorkshire. Most of the local government records for areas now considered part
of Gateshead are kept at DRO.
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NRO Alnwick District Council Morpeth Borough Council
NRO Ashington Urban District Council
NRO Bellingham Rural District
NRO Bellington Urban District
NRO Blyth Urban District
NRO Castleward Rural District
NRO Consett Urban District Council
NRO Cramlington Urban District
NRO Easington Rural District
NRO Haltwhistle Rural District Council
NRO Hexham Urban District Council
NRO Hexham Rural District Council
NRO Houghton Le Spring Urban District
NRO Morpeth Rural District Council
NRO Morpeth Urban District Council
NRO Newbiggin by the Sea Urban District Council
NRO Northumberland County Council
NRO Prudhoe Urban District
NRO Rothbury Rural District Council
NRO Weetslade Urban District Council
TWAS MD.NC Newcastle City Council papers
TWAS UD.LO Longbenton Urban District Council
TWAS CB.GA Gateshead County Borough
TWAS MB.WA Wallsend Municipal Borough
TWAS RD.CW Castle War Rural District Council
TWAS RD.CS Chester le Street Rural District Council
TWAS. UB.BF Benwell and Fenham Urban District Council
TWAS UB.BL Blaydon Urban District Council
TWAS UD.EA Earsdon District Council
TWAS UD.FE Felling Urban District Council
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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TWAS UD.GO Gosforth Urban District Council
TWAS UD.HB Hebburn Urban District Council
TWAS UD.HE Hetton le Hole Urban District Council
TWAS UD.LO Longbenton Urban District Council
TWAS UD.NB Newburn Urban District Council
TWAS L.3998 Newcastle Council Committee Book, 1639-59
TWAS UD.RY Ryton Urban District Council
TWAS CB.SS South Shields County Borough
TWAS MD.ST South Tyneside Metropolitan District Council
TWAS UD.SO Southwick Urban District Council
TWAS RD.SW Sunderland Rural District Council
TWAS CB.TY and RD.TY Tynemouth County Borough
TWAS Walker Urban District Council
TWAS UD.WS Washington Urban District Council
TWAS UD.WG Willington Quay Urban District Council
TWAS UD.WE Weetslade Urban District Council
TWAS UD.WH Whickham Urban District Council
TWAS MB.WB Whitley Bay (and Monkseaton) Municipal Borough/Urban
District Council
Centralized Political Party Archives
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Bishopsgate Library, London. Papers on Socialism, labour movement, pacifist
and humanist movements & the Lesbian and Gay Newsmedia Archive
(LAGNA). http://www.lagna.org.uk/
Communist
Party
of
Great
Britain
Archive,
http://www.communistpartyarchive.org.uk/index.php
Conservative Party Archives, Bodleian Library Oxford
Offers an image online service http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/cpa
Labour History Archive, the Peoples’ History Museum, Manchester. Their
website offers guidance on researching the history of the Labour party and
Labour movement. http://www.phm.org.uk/archive-study-centre/userful-links/
Marx Memorial Library, London. The library collections cover the history of
Marxism and Socialism http://www.marx-memorial-library.org/
National Co-operative Archive, Manchester http://www.archive.coop/
The Working Class Movement Library, Manchester http://www.wcml.org.uk/
Trade
Unions
Congress,
London
Metropolitan
University,
https://metranet.londonmet.ac.uk/services/sas/library-services/tuc/
Local Political Party Collections
DRO, NRO and TWAS have large political party collections. Their holdings include
divisional minutes, council minutes, annual meetings, reports, publications, and the
minutes of men’s, women’s and youth groups. The dates given represent the scope
of the records.
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
Most party collections are not fully documented or itemized. Please refer to the
TWAS User Guide 25, and speak to an archivist if you are interested in a particular
group.
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Conservative party (1891-84)
The Labour Party (1923-88)
The Liberal Party (1892-46)
The Co-Operative Party (1949-1992, most records date from the 1960s-80s)
The Social Democrats (1980s)
While there are less documents relating to the Communist, Socialist parties and
fascist and other far-right movements in this region, examples of their literature can
be found in the paper collections of activists, trade union papers, businesses, police
records, and in interviews (see below). Examples include;
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DRO D/Co Consett Iron Company, papers related to the 1926 Chopwell
Colliery strike and the influence of Communists in the area
DRO /DLI 2/1/108-9 Durham Light Infantry records, copies of ‘Peace’
Community newspaper, 1952-3
DRO D/DMA Acc. 2157 D, vols 119-127 Durham Miners’ Association political
funding ledgers and cash books
DRO D/EBF 34-6 Durham Coal Trade Reports of Arbitrations, 1876, 1891 and
1896, with leaflet “Who’s a Socialist”
DRO D/DMA Acc. 2157 D, Boxes 192-193 Durham Miners’ Association
Labour Party Publications
DRO D/DMA Durham Miners’ Association’s Sam Watson collection, Labour,
union and Soviet Communist leaflets, newsletters, and letters on East Europe,
Israel and the Middle East, 1930s-1960s.
NRO 759/B/98 Leaflet, A. Horner, ‘Communism and Coal’, 1923, in the
papers of the Northumberland Miners Mutual Association
NRO 759/C/35 Leaflet ‘Exposure of the Socialist Conspiracy: The AntiSocialist Union of Great Britain’, 1911, in the papers of the Northumberland
Miners Mutual Association
TWAS DX1152/2 Various trade union and shipping publications collections,
Communist newspaper, 1943
TWAS PA.NC/2/2/55 Police summary papers with a Communist broadsheet,
“The People against Mosley”, 1943)
TWAS PO.LAB Minutes of the Sunderland Young Socialists, 1966-6
DRO D/X 244, 246 Election manifestos of the British National Party, 1992.
The records of the Durham County Association of Trade Councils have a lot of
information on local reactions to political movements, protest and election publicity,
including far-right groups. For example see;
 DRO D/X 953/2/91 Correspondence of the Durham County Association of
Trade Councils and the Durham University Anti-Apartheid Group, 1986-7
 DRO D/X 953/2/92 Correspondence of the Durham County Association of
Trade Councils regarding the British National Party in Durham, 1989
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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DRO D.X 953/2/107 Correspondence of the Durham County Association of
Trade Councils and the Corby Trade Council regarding a defence fund for
protesters arrested protesting against the National Front, 1980
Trade Unions, Workers & Employers’ Associations
Trade Union papers are an important source of information on the working conditions
in individual industries and on the experiences of trade unionists. They can be found
as distinct collections or in business papers. The North East has a large collection of
mining union records, and those of related industries, and there are a number of
community based projects examining the mining industry. Durham’s Hidden Depths
Project is currently building a searchable database of union members from the
indexes of the Durham Miners’ Association.
The list below represents a small proportion of the papers available from local union
branches. The particulars of individual disputes can be found in business records
and in the trade unions’ correspondence files. Examples include;
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DRO D/NFU 1/32-256 Records of the National Farmers’ Union,
correspondence with information on cases, such as D/NFU Porter vs the A. A.
after motor accident, 1955, and D/NFU Porter vs Kidd wages dispute, 1956.
NRO 2653/15 Records of disputes, committees and deputations from workers
in Cowpen Coal Company records, 1900-30
TWAS DS.BM/2/41 Bartram and Sons Ltd, shipbuilders, correspondence with
trade unions about their members, 1944-1965.
TWAS DS.DOX2/77/1-3 William Doxford and Sons Ltd, shipbuilders, printed
booklets outlining the wage and conditions agreed by Doxford’s and the
General and Municipal Workers’ Union, 1970-1977
DRO D/DMA Durham Miners’ Association,
DRO D.DCOA Durham Coal Owners’ Association, 1870s-1980s
DRO D/ASW Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers, 1870s-1950s
DRO D/NUT National Union of Teachers, 1920s-1980s
DRO D/NFU National Union of Farmers, 1920s-1970s
NRO 3793 Papers of the Northumberland Branch of the National Union of
Miners 1830-1985
NRO 5021 Records of the Northumberland Branch of the National Union of
Miners, Mechanics Branch, 1923-1981
NRO 3757 Records of the Colliery Mechanics Association, 1946-81
TWAS AS.ACM British Association of Colliery Management, 1948-1980s
TWAS AS.BA North East Brewers’ Association, 1887-1990
TWAS AS.LT North East Licensed Trade Association
TWAS AS.LV1 & 2 National Union of Licensed Victuallers, 1875-1985
TWAS EM.TDA National Trade and Defence Association, 1891-1974
TWAS AS.CFE Northern Union of Mechanics/Northern Counties Technical
Examinations Council/Northern Council for Further Education, 1923-1990s
TWAS DX826 Various Trade Union Rules and Reports, 1885-1975
TWAS TU.ACJ1 Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners, 1892-1907
TWAS TU.EOT1 Engineering Officers (Telecommunications) Association,
Newcastle, 1947-54
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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TWAS TU.NUT1-6 Records of the local branches of the National Union of
Teachers, 1870-82
NRO759 Northumberland Miners Mutual Confident Association/International
Miners’ Federation/National Union of Mineworkers covering the Northern
Coalfields of Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear.
TWAS TU.PG1 Pressed Glassmakers Society, 1872-1990
TWAS TU.SMA Shipbuilding and Allied Industries Management Association
(SAIMA), 1975-1992
NRO National Coal Owners’ Association: files and reports from the NCOA are
usually found in the collections of the National Coal Board.
TWAS AS.BF1-13 Northern Counties Builders Federation (Building Trade
Employers Association),1890-1995
TWAS AS.IES North East Coast Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders,
1884-1992
Estates, union and council records can provide information on agricultural workers
as tenants and employees. For example,
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NRO 3331/1-65 Records of the Middleton Family of Belsay, with timebooks,
wages, duties of different types of agricultural workers and gamekeepers on
the Middleton’s lands.
NRO 322 & NRO 2655 Records of the Swinburne Capheaton estates
including tenancy agreements and wage books, 1883-1930s?
NRO CES 275 Records of Kirkley Hall Farm Institute (later Kirkley Hall
Agriculture College), 1949-66. Also see accessions NRO 1652/39, 2176/259
2184/12/8, 3042, and 4090.
NRO 530/13 Papers of Charles Percy and Son, National Union of Farmers’
Northumberland branch, 1921-40
TWAS SX 155 Papers of the Royal Agricultural Society of England,
Newcastle branch.
Trade union collections can provide information on the grassroots politics, education
movements, and the labour movement generally. The Northumberland branch of
National Union of Miners in particular collected documents relating to affiliated
unions, industries and workers’ movements. These have been deposited in the
Northumberland Record Office (NRO).Examples include;
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TWAS E.WEA1 & E.WEA 2 Records of the Workers’ Education Association,
Northern District including Cumbria), 1889-1987l. Previously the Society for
Promoting Higher Education for Working Men, it originated out of the CoOperative Unions and trade unions and education reform movement.
NRO 759/A1/1-7 Financial records of the Northumberland Miners’ Mutual
Confident Association, payments to Labour party, 1919-1944
NRO 759/C/1-90 Printed leaflets of the Labour Party including Annual
Conference Reports, 1903-59
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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NRO 5021/B5/1-7 Papers to the Labour Party from the Northumberland
Branch of the National Union of Miners, Mechanics Branch, 1923-1981
including NRO/B5/5 Draft Speech in favour of the Labour Party, 1945?
NRO 1474/36 Ashington Miners’ Federation poster about ‘Non-Unionists’,
1934
NRO 5021/B9/30-36 Papers belonging to the Northumberland Branch of the
National Union of Miners, Mechanics Branch including NRO 5021/B9/37
Copies of Arthur Scargill’s “New Realism: The Politics of Fear” and Maggie
Chetty, “Ring Around the Carnival”, pro-trade union and anti-racism children’s
book.
The Temperance Movement
The Temperance movement evolved in the nineteenth century. It drew supporters
from all sides of the political and social spectrum, but became associated with the
Liberal Party in particular. During the early twentieth century, alcohol was considered
to be a national moral, health, and economic issue, especially during wartime.
Stricter regulation was placed on the sale and consumption of alcohol. Employers
encouraged temperance movements within their organizations. For example,
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DRO D/Sh. H 1149-52 Records of the Church of England Temperance
Society, 1910-1940s
DRO D/X 1611/45/27/2 North East Railway station with the Cadets of
Temperance, 1909, the Cadets’ records are held D/X984, 1885-1946
DRO D/X 954 The National British Women's Total Abstinence Union
(NBWTAU), Barnard Castle branch, 1923-59
TWAS MG.WB East Castle Ward Petty Sessions (court records) where
alcohol and entertainment licenses were issued, 1894-1960
TWAS MD.NC/94/18 Newcastle City Council, Temperance Festival Special
Committee (also known as the Hoppings)
TWAS DX1031 Heworth Coal Co Ltd, Newcastle Sons of Temperance
TWAS SX47 The National British Women's Total Abstinence Union
(NBWTAU), Fenham branch, 1932-87
DRO D/XD 103/2 Notice of Grand Temperance Entertainment at Mechanics
Hall, nd
Churches were heavily involved in circulating information on Temperance, and many
Temperance groups met in church buildings. Church records often contain lists of
members as well as their literature. Examples include;
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NRO M2/AA/5 High House Wesleyan Methodism church, lists of the
Temperance Society, with their printed Temperance oath cards, 1895-1912
NRO M10/A/33 Blyth and Seaton Deleval Methodist circuit Temperance
Schedule Book, 1893-94, listing of the speeches and meetings
NRO EP/76/75 Minutes of the Stamfordham Branch of the Church of England
Temperance Society, 1875-84+
NRO M.D1/3 Sunderland and Newcastle District Methodist church, “The Drink
Evil” leaflet from Abstainers League of the Church, 1930s.
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
The Cooperative Movement
Cooperative societies were a prominent feature of working class society in the northeast in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Cooperatives were self-governing
societies whose members paid set amounts each year to join. They could then use
their Cooperative’s shops and services, participate in the democratic running of the
society, and receive a dividend of the society’s profit. The size of the dividend
depended on the amount the individual had purchased from the society. By the late
nineteenth century they were grouped into two federations, the Cooperative
Wholesale Society (suppliers for the smaller Cooperative societies) and the political
Co-operative Union, which offered political and education opportunities for members.
It was a political movement, associated with the Labour movement. Its Women’s
Guild was especially powerful. The modern Cooperative Group business was formed
by the gradual amalgamation of the smaller societies over the following century. The
governing principles of the societies meant that they produced large paper archives,
many of which are available. A map of the 1950s and 1960s northern cooperatives is
available in TWAS D.NCP/23/7. Examples of the societies’ papers include;
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TWAS DT.COP1-26 Records of 26 North-Eastern Cooperative Societies from
the Tyne and Wear region, c.1860-1980s with records of their charities,
libraries, reading rooms, shops, employees, quarterly reports and political
activities.
TWAS DX959 South Shields Equitable Cooperative Society, 1914-33
TWAS DX1209/5 Newcastle Cooperative Society publications, 1950s.
NRO 920 Seaton Valley Cooperative Ltd, 1876-1965
NRO 1758 Shilbottle Colliery Cooperative Wholesale Society, 1913-68
NRO 2072/1-9 Guidepost Cooperative Society papers, 1919-70
TWAS holds some of the records of the Newcastle and Tyneside District Cooperative Party. Most of the records date from the 1960s to early 1980s.
Anti-war and Pacifist (Peace) Movements
Many pacifist and anti-war organizations operated through local churches, such as
the League of Nations Union, the World Alliance for Promoting International
Friendship, the National Peace Council, and the Peace Pledge Union. The papers of
the Peace Council are held at the London School of Economics. There is also a
large collection of materials at the Working Class Movement Library. Information on
the peace movement can also be found in oral histories and the personal papers of
politicians and activists (see below). Reports of anti-war meetings were often
censored or unfavourably reported in the local or national press.
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TWAS League of Nations Union an organization formed after the First World
War to promote peace and the ideals of the League of Nations. Branches of
the unions were often linked to churches. See TWAS C.NS13/33 St Columba
United Reform Church, North Shields correspondence with League of Nations
Union and the World Alliance for Promoting International Friendship, TWAS
N.NC7/2/3 St James’ United Reform Church, Newcastle League of Nations
Union book, 1929-1943, Tees PR/M (P)/8/16 Middleborough St Paul’s parish,
League of Nations Literature on disarmament, 1933-4
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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NRO 1635/318-21 Papers of the War family, Peace Ballot leaflets and ballot
paper, c. 1935
TWAS D.VA/67/1-5 Records from Vickers Armstrong weapons factory,
editions of ‘The Gun’ magazine produced by ‘the militant group of workers at
Elswick and Scotswood’ with lists of anti-war lectures, 1934-5
NRO 7019 Records of Northumbrians for Peace
DRO D/X1689 245 Election communication from Tyne and Wear Anti-Fascist
Association for Darlington Constituency, April 1992
Local Politicians, Activists and Observers of Political Parties
All local archives have a large number of the personal papers and recordings of
interviews with politicians and former activists. Beamish People’s Collection and
Northumberland Record Office (NRO) have local collections of oral histories
collected by academics, journalists, and community groups. Some have been
transcribed. Many interviewees do not discuss their political beliefs but do talk about
their memories of the different political groups in their areas. Examples include;
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DRO D/SHO Personal papers of Robert Shotton (1885-1967) Socialist and
Labour party councillor and participant in the miners' unions.
TWAS DF.COW Personal papers of Joseph Cowan Junior (1829-1900),
Radical and Liberal MP. Acted on behalf of Chartists, trade unionism, the
Reform movement, the Polish-Hungarian Refugee Committee, and the
Northern Co-Operative Union, owner of the Newcastle Chronicle. He founded
the Cowen Home for Disabled Soldiers and Sailors.
TWAS.DOD Diaries and notebooks of Ruth Dodd (1890-1976), National
Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Families’
Association, Labour Councillor and anti-war campaigner.
TWAS DF.WKR Papers of Eric Neilson Walker (1921-2003), Labour Party
Activist
TWAS DF.KAE Papers of Olive Kaer (1924-2007), Conservative Councillor
TWAS DF.DA David Adams (1871-1943), Labour MP and Alderman
TWAS DF.JC Papers of Joe Clarke (1927-2006) organizer of the Communist
League, lecturer in the History of Science and Technology at Northumbria
University
NRO T/216-221 & T/250-255 Interviews and oral history of Margaret Gibb,
Labour Party activist of Cambo, Northumberland
NRO T/345A-B, Interviews and oral history with Ian Lavery, former President
of Northumberland National Union of Miners (Ashington Branch) discussing
the Miners’ Strikes of 1984-5
NRO T/108 Interview and oral history with Miss N E. Balls, Tynemouth, former
suffragette
NRO T/7-9 Interviews with Sir William Lawther, retired miners’ leader, of
Cullercoats, Northumberland
TWAS DF.TDS Papers of T. Dan Smith (1915-93), Independent Labour,
Revolutionary Communist, anti-war and anti-imperialism campaigner, and
later Labour Councillor. Jailed for corruption in public officer, and later activist
with the Howard League for Penal Reform.
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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Beamish AUD 1997-20 Interview with Norah Balls and Connie Lewcock,
Suffragettes
Beamish AUD2004-74 Interview with Jack Parks, about the political
movements of early Socialism, Labour and Communism
Beamish AUD2008-128 Interview with Jimmy Cutter, Communist party
member
Beamish AUD 2008-52 Interview with Mr Cain, trade unionist in a coal mine
and Labour Party member, “told could only have job back if gave up
socialism”
Beamish AUD 2005-37 Interview with Arthur Penn, discussing the
Temperance movement over time in Brampton, Durham
Beamish AUD 1974-26 Interview with Tom Turnbull about Methodism and the
Temperance movement
Beamish AUD1991-2 Interview with John Trueman about Methodism and the
Temperance movement
Elections, Publicity and Rallies
Election and publicity materials can help identify local concerns and policy issues.
These documents however are rarely collated in party collections. Many isolated
examples survive as affiliated organizations, groups and individuals collected
political literature. Printed ephemera often ends up in miscellaneous council
collections in archives.
Local newspapers are a rich source of information on electioneering and party
political events in an area. The NRO has three main collections of printed ephemera
detailing a wide range of political and social events in Northumberland:
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NRO 4240: H C Coates and Co of Alnwick (printing firm)
NRO 2639 J. J. Mackay, Morpeth Herald Printing Office.
NRO 167/1-36 William Davison of Alnwick, printers.
Election publicity and manifestos can be found in council records, such as
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DRO D/X 1689 Miscellaneous election materials, compiled by Colin J. Higgins
in scrapbooks and files and deposited by Durham Council, with information on
their selection, manifestos and publicity surrounding individual candidates and
polls, 1970s-1980s.
DRO D/X 1268 Records of the Seaham Division Labour Party newspaper
including DX 1268/14-23 their ‘Socialist’ newspaper, 1930s-1960s
DRO D/X 953 Papers of the Durham County Association of Trade Councils
contains a range of papers on anti-nuclear, anti-apartheid and political rallies.
TWAS DX1018 Liberal Democrat Publicity Material, 1990-2000
TWAS DX 749 E. M. White Election leaflets, Conservative
TWAS 205/9-12 Scrapbooks of Newcastle local elections 1883-1903
TWAS 3822 Tynemouth Election Leaflets 1916-74
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Subject Guide III: Politics and Political Movements
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Teesside U.JDB/6/12 James Dodds and Brown, estate Agents, "Hints for
speakers. The Municipal Elections 1938" issued by the Conservative and
Unionist Central Office.
Teeside U.PEN/22/1 The Pennyman Family papers, containing lists which
compare Conservative, Liberal and Socialist policies on labour and
agriculture, 1874-1914, 1886-1929.
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