Tag Archives: Stockton

Still more on the Stockton branch of the National Unemployed Workers Movement

Two years ago I wrote about an image John Coates’ friend, Tim Brown, was looking at. Tim was thinking that the policeman shown in the image was from the Middlesbrough Police Force; the force both had served in. After some enquiry we discovered that it was the Gateshead constabulary shown; we established that the Stockton contingent of the NUWM were marching across the Tyne Bridge. See –  https://foxburg.edublogs.org/2020/08/14/the-stockton-branch/

I have since seen this image used fairly often, as it seems to be one of the few images in which the lettering on the banner can be seen in it’s entirety.

Two weeks ago I had cause to review this image once again. Peter Shearer shared an image showing – “Unemployed marchers moving through Northumberland Road, Newcastle in 1932.” which he had found on  Mirrorpix. 

Peter shared it to a Facebook page for Classic Photos of Newcastle and The East End and it was subsequently reposted on the North east Labour History Society Facebook page.  When I saw it I contacted Peter, he told me where he’d found it and I downloaded a copy.

Unemployed marchers moving through Northumberland Road, Newcastle in 1932

What first caught my eye was the Sunderland Branch banner, as this seemed to be the one seen in the Tyne Bridge photograph.

On blowing up the image to see the Sunderland Branch banner more clearly I realised that the Middlesbrough Communist Party banner can be seen and that this is also on the Tyne Bridge Photograph, although only ‘Communist Party’ can be made out. It is great that this new photograph allows us to see most of the lettering on the banner. We can also see that the West Hartlepool Unemployed Organisation banner in both photographs, they are taking part and marching with their own banner, this was a grouping I was unaware of up until now.

Clearly this is the same same group in the two pictures, meaning the pictures were taken at the same time but at different locations. They are very close in time as to reach Northumberland Road, the marchers would probably have moved north from the Tyne Bridge up Pilgrim Street, then continued up Northumberland Street, then turned right just before the Haymarket. This short distance confirms our suggestion from two years ago that the photograph of the Stockton contingent does show them on the Tyne Bridge.

I have found that there is also a second image in the Mirrorpix page which shows the same event and in this one the banners can be seen even more clearly, I think this second image shows the group further along from the previous photograph, showing them passing the City Hall.  I’m really pleased that the Middlesbrough banner can be read quite easily.

I think these images show how well organised the march was. In a interview George Short tells us that the North East Group assembled in Newcastle on 4th October 1932 where a rally and speeches occured, and that a further Teesside contingent joined the North East Group at Darlington the next day, on the 5th October 1932.

As well as giving us a clear indication of the make up of the group it has also raised a few more intriging questions: for years I had pointed out that the smartly dressed man marching beside the NUWM men, I proposed that this was an MI5 officer detailed with following the march; we know some did as their reports are available in the National archives

The new photograph showing Northumberland Road has made me reconsider my proposal, for he seems in this picture to be stewarding the marchers, the men seem to accept him, he appears to be part of the contingent.  He is dressed so much differently to the rest of  the marchers that he stands out.

The Tyne Bridge photograph suggested that the Stockton  Contingent headed the Teesside groups; I think this it is now supported by these photographs, it seems that it is the back of the Stockton banner that can be seen going out of shot in the Northumberland Road photograph as the Stockton contingent  are heading this group, and again they are missing from the second of these two new  images as they  have marched out of shot.

I am particularly pleased with the second picture, although it does not show the Stockton contingent it does shows so much more of the banners and the placards.

The placard which starts with ‘Sacrifice’ in much clearer and unobscured, unlike in the Tyne Bridge Photograph, and the West Hartlepool banner is very clear in this second picture.

In all eighteen contingents converged on London’s Hyde Park on 27th October 1932, where the 3,000 marchers were met by a crowd of between 50, 000 or 150, 000 depending upon which source you use. The Metropolitan police commissioner deployed 70, 000 police officers to control the crowd in 1932, the aim was to prevent the petition the men carried reaching Parliament; when the Police confiscated the Parliamentary petition in Hyde Park violence broke out. In scenes reminiscent of Peterloo mounted officers charged the huge crowd which contained women and children, resulting in 75 people being seriously injured. Phyllis Short recalls in interview that she was struck on the head by a mounted policeman and was therefore unable to attend the Mass Rally in Trafalgar Square the next day, but George did speak at Trafalgar Square.

The media blackout on publicity for Communist inspired protests ensured that very was reported, and this has meant that these events are overshadowed by the; in terms of numbers, tiny Jarrow Crusade. I think, however, that the photograph of Trafalgar square speaks for itself.

The NUWM leader Walter Hannington was arrested in Hyde Park, he was refused bail so he spent several months in jail. He tried to prosecute the Home Secretary  Lord Trenchard  the break in by police of  the NUWM’s London offices; the Police broke in and destroyed the contents whilst Hannington was imprisoned. The Prime Minister, Ramsey MacDonald, personally intervened to prevent the prosecution of Lord Trenchard going ahead. This is why we don’t see many photographs of Wal’ Hannington in 1932.

Walter ‘wal’ Hannington (1896 -1966) was a Founding Member Of The Communist Party Of Great Britain And National Organiser Of The National Unemployed Workers’ Movement.

I feel that these photographs give us a richer impression of the 1932 National Hunger March than we had and especially the organisation of the Teesside Communist Party. George Short had returned from the International Lenin School just a few months before the National Hunger March, but these images show the strength of the groups that were campaigning against The Means Test, and that they were well organised, a testimoney to the dedication and organisational ability of the small number of Communist Party activists.

These three images are a fantastic record of the 1932 National Hunger march and the North East contingent. I’m really pleased as I have some really exciting news regarding the Women’s Contingent on the 1932 March, I did write about it in 2020 – https://foxburg.edublogs.org/2020/08/17/more-on-the-stockton-branch/ but now I have some new material which is quite stunning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Editions

Cuneo, Terence Tenison; The Opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, 1825; National Railway Museum; 

Last month I gave a talk at Preston Park Museum to mark the anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, meanwhile, on the other side of Stockton my father was also talking, he contributed to the Friends of the Stockton and Darlington Railway afternoon of talks.

On the evening I met the author, Tony Stowers, for his reading of No1 in Middlesbrough Central Library, the photograph opposite shows Tony holding the new limited edition of No.1, and myself holding Lewis and No.1 his book for younger readers. Only last year I had written about this wonderful book, see – https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/subjects/history/history-subject-community/hodder-history-blog/july-2018/no-1,

For this September’s events Tony had produced this special limited edition of No1 he had purchased the rights to use the Terence Tenison Cuneo painting entitled ‘The opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway’ which once you read the book you will appreciate how fitting the image is. Cuneo is best know as the leading painter of railways and for securing the prestigious role of official artist for the 1953 Coronation of Elisabeth II.

Whilst talking with Tony he mentioned an aspect he had not considered before, namely the purpose of the Yarm branch line, he’d begun to think about this after reading my fathers biography of Benjamin Flounders – How Durst he do that 

On the day the journey started at Brusselton at eight o’clock in the morning.  The locomotive pulled thirty-four wagons in total, twelve loaded with coal and flour, the other twenty-two carrying upwards of four hundred passengers.  The train covered the eight miles into Darlington in little over an hour.  At Darlington more waggons were added and more passengers boarded, until there were more than six hundred people, included Mr. Meynells’ band, which played at every prestigious event.  The train at times reached fifteen or sixteen miles an hour, but it took almost three hours to reach Stockton, mainly due to a very long delay at Yarm, where the coal wagons were uncoupled. 

How Durst He Do That: the Life of Benjamin Flounders Esq – Jim Fox (page 33)

What was the purpose of ‘a very long delay at Yarm,’ ? It was difficult to say as the Yarm junction mostly overlooked in modern histories of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. I searched a number of my books and then online for any reference to Yarm on 27th September 1825 and came away with little more than passing mentions to the individuals from yarm and the 1925 plaque, I therefore went to the source of the passage, my father.

In the 1875 book, Jubilee Memorial of the Railway System. A History of the Stockton and Darlington Railway and a Record of Its Results, J S Jeans writes:

Stockton was reached in three hours and seven minutes after leaving Darlington, including all stoppages, and one of unusual length at Yarm, where some coal waggons were left, the distance between the two towns being close on twelve miles. All along the line of route, the fields, lanes, and bridges were covered with spectators; and when the procession arrived within a few miles of Stockton, it was joined by a large number of horses, vehicles, and foot-passengers. (page 71)

I’ll be the first to admit that the reference is rather short, but as the book is renowned for being a classic and is highly detailed; it relies heavily upon S&DR documentation, I am inclined to conclude that this account is pretty reliable. What caught my eye however was the rest of this passage, especially the ‘joined by a large number of horses, vehicles, and foot-passengers.’ part for passage, for this brought me back to the cover of No1, and the choice of the Cuneo painting, which shows No1 surrounded by a large number of horses, vehicles, and foot-passengers.

Men such as my ancestor, Benjamin Flounders, were in essence practical businessmen, the cheif objective of the S&DR was to transport coal from the South Durham coalfields, mostly to the port of Stockton, but as it was used locally it was also transported to the larger urban districts; Darlington and Yarm. On top of this the simple spectacle of coal waggons being uncoupled, transported and unloaded would interest a huge number of people, bringing publicity. I’m not saying the stop at Yarm was a publicity stunt, after all the whole day was a publicity stunt, but it is clear that the future operation of the Railway was being demonstrated, the directors were showing people the practical benefits the Railway would bring, drumming up business. What is especially pleasing is the way I have come about this understanding, I have seen how History and historical fiction are created; the use of evidence to verify a statement, the careful selection of information, and then the interpretation and use of that information, which has advanced my understanding.

 

 

If only everything was as reliable as a volkswagen

I feel lucky in the fact that I have the opportunity to engage in projects which have open ended outcomes, for this gives me the flexibility to examine issues from an aspect of interest. I have never felt confident teaching reliability; this may be because it is linked to many similar concepts, such as validity and accuracy, therefore I am trying to improve my own understanding.

When working on a narrative of an historical event, I want the information to be as accurate as possible; therefore I test the source materials, If I am to use it, I must trust it, I must believe in it’s reliability. Maybe because I don’t feel confident, I have always found reliability a complex issue to teach, it is a term I, like many others, have used in the classroom many times; I ask students to assess the reliability of a source in assessments.

One aid to understanding reliability is demonstrated by one of my old starter activities entitled As reliable as a Volkswagen’, which used an old Volkswagen advert. More recently I came across a Tweet from Dan Snow (@thehistoryguy)‘You know, there’s this subject you can take in school which teaches how to evaluate information and the reliability of sources. . . . . . It’s called history.’ , and then we get the annual Horace Greasley story – (https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/himmler-prisoner-staring-defiance-1941/) reappeared on social media, accompanied by the multiple comments confirming the ‘truth’ of the story. The confirmation is usually based the assertion that Greasley’s widow was certain it was him in the photograph face to face with Himmler, and faith trumps analysis. I have also spent some time re-reading Chris Edwards’ 2010 article Down the foggy ruins of time: Bob Dylan and the concept of evidence ((Teaching History 140) https://www.history.org.uk/publications/resource/3622/teaching-history-140-creative-history) reviewing his practical approach to misconceptions and reliability. I had been speaking to a colleague about a series of lessons on Civil Rights, and how I got students to compare and contrast two accounts; one the song The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, and one a contemporary newspaper report. As you can see I seem to be seeing reliability all over the place, I am lucky enough to be doing some ‘proper History’ research; actually going into the archives and studying Police records and local newspapers, as opposed to my usual research – flicking through a textbook and using the best sources I find.

I’m doing this research for The Battle of Stockton campaign (http://www.battleofstockton.co.uk). The campaign is only a few months old, and in this time we have been remarkably successful’ on 9th September 2018, the Mayor of Stockton-on-Tees herself will be unveiling a plaque, in the High Street, commemorating this little-known event. Along with the unveiling, there will be a number of other events, we have speakers: our local MP, Marlene Sidaway of the IBMT (http://www.international-brigades.org.uk/) and the Historian David Rosenburg. The huge publicity from The Battle of Stockton Ale launch in January generated momentum for the campaign, so much so that we are already planning the 2019 commemoration.

We found that the events of the 10th September 1933 are not well known locally, and even less so nationally, there are very few written accounts, and of these, most are very similar, if not identical. The earliest account is from the North East Daily Gazette newspaper’s report of Monday 11th September, with the dramatic tabloid style ‘Razor blades thrown in Stockton clash’ banner headline top and centre of their front page. This appears to be the basis for all subsequent accounts, thus as this is the primary account, its reliability is well worth investigating.

I’m confident that the majority of students, when asked to analyse a text, such as the Gazette account, and the, near identical, Hartlepool Northern Daily Mail report; also of 11th September 1933, will spot bias. These valuable reports are useful and can also be judged on reliability, especially through an enquiry of the eyewitness’s accounts. Take the quotes in the newspaper reports, for example, all the quotes come from BUF members, telling us something about the membership of this new grouping; their priorities and outlook. There is an issue in the newspaper reports with the blurring of the boundary between direct quotes and the writers report of events, giving the impression that the reporter witnessed the ‘lawful parade’ first hand. It is quite clear, however, which side the reporter favours:

A coloured man brandishing a heavy pole struck down a young Fascist, who, at the time, was facing the other way.”

and

The actual fighting did not begin until a member of the crowd poked his two forefingers into the eyes of a blackshirt.” 

both Hartlepool Northern Daily Mail, 11th September 1933

For me these accounts are simply wonderful; the details seems to be taken straight out of a Laurel and Hardy film, in fact it makes one wonder if the comic violence shown in Sons of the Desert; released just four months later, was inspired by such reports as these. I can imagine a sneaky Communist stealing all the Blackshirts’ shoes and then laying tin tacks in their path, or someone handing out exploding cigars.

The major drawback with these reports is that they are so one-sided, the individuals are drawn as crude caricatures, underlain with a simplistic good versus evil foundation – however this time the good guys are dressed in black. The challenge for us in the History classroom, is that all subsequent accounts of the events are based upon these reports, the narrow focus of the narrative, with its glorification of the violence, detracts from an understanding of the sequence of events. In an enquiry, when we ask students to consider the source of the information, consider the evidence that is presented, think about how the evidence fits into an explanation, and evaluate the information with respect to prior knowledge, we can usually give them plenty of sources with which to compare. Here there appears to be just the one biased account, with no alternative narrative to measure against, judging and assessing reliability with this in mind seems a tricky task.

After a colleague suggested “seems to me if it’s on wiki that will be a reliable source.” I decided to see what this could produce, I find that Wikipedia is customarily an entertaining source to use, therefore I was initially surprised to find an entry for The Battle of Stockton, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stockton) with a handful of references, I was disappointed to find these references are either based on the 2011 Chris Lloyd article for the Northern Echo (http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/9309751.The_Battle_of_Stockton__1933/) and the associated radio broadcast, or The Telegraph’s 2004 obituary for John Warburton (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1470744/John-Warburton.html). Disappointing not because of the quality of the reports, but rather because the references are so limited, and in the case of The Telegraph too brief. I was left, in reality, with comparing a 1933 newspaper report to a 2011 newspaper report. As this is not ideal for measuring reliability or utility, it led me to abandon my plans for the time being.

Fear not, this was only temporary, I’ll write about how this difficulty was overcome in a later post.