Sean Creighton

Images

We Band of Brothers - Freemasonry in Radical Social Movements

Top part of share certificate. Sean Creighton Collection

 

 

Co-operatives and Mutuals: The New Challenge

 

 

‘Strikers’ March to London’ postcard in The
Prince Regent Series. R.P. Co., London.
Sean Creighton Collection

Labour & Mutuality History

I have been involved in researching, talking and writing about of labour movement and other mutual organisations for many years. With their long history of collective action to meet the needs of their members not met by the state or private enterprise, and in forging participative democracy, mutual organisations could be an important part of improving social inclusion, civil renewal and neighbourhood renewal and regeneration.

Battersea & Wandsworth Mutual Organisations

I gave a talk ‘Parallel existences or cross-linkages? Exploring freemasonry and other mutual organisations in Battersea and Wandsworth’ at the joint Conference ’’We Band of Brothers’: Freemasonry in Radical and Social Movements 1700-2000’ organised by the Centre for Research into Freemasonry, the Centre for Gender Studies in Europe, the Society for the Study of Labour History and the Friendly Societies Research Group held on 18-20 November 2004. My talk is available on request by email.

Co-operative Societies

My ‘The Municipal Mecca. The development of the co-operative movement in Battersea.’ is in Bill Lancaster and Paddy McGuire (eds), Towards The Co-operative Commonwealth. Essays in the History of Co-operation. Co-operative College and History Workshop Trust, 1996.

Freemasonry as Mutual Organisation

Further details on the rich history of freemasonry as a mutual organisation can be found on http://freemasonry.dept.shef.ac.uk/ . , which also contains my joint note with Professor Andrew Prescott on Black Freemasonry

Friendly Societies

I was a founder member of Friendly Societies Research Group in 1999: www.open.ac.uk/socialsciences/fsrg
I have written the following on friendly societies:
- ‘The Ancient Order of Foresters in Battersea and Neighbouring Districts’. (Agenda Services 1999) – available on request by email.
- Battersea Friendly Societies. Note on website of the Association of Friendly Societies: www.afs.org.uk/research/researchbatterseapage.htm
- Source Summary: National Deposit Friendly Society. FSRG Newsletter No. 4. April 2000 on Research Group website –- go to Newsletters section
- Battersea. Article in Research Group newsletter No.5. August 2000 on Research Group website – go to Newsletters section
- Friendly Societies in Battersea. Wandsworth Historian, No. 71, Spring 2000.

Friends of Labour Loan Societies

These mutual societies were working class organisations started in London in the 1850s and still active in the 1930s. My essay ‘Friends of Labour Loan Societies. An Introductory Essay’ (Agenda Services 1999) is available on request by email.

Labour Party History

Diane Hayter, a member of the Labour Party National Executive, proposed that the anniversary of the change in name to the Labour Party be celebrated in 2006 with local Constituency Labour Party histories. As its Secretary at the time I successfully proposed that the organisation support the initiative.

• My paper ‘Preparing to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the renaming of the Labour Party (1906)’ is on Labour Heritage’s website: www.labourheritage.com via the 2006 Project page
• In a note in the Spring 2005 Newsletter of the Society for the Study of Labour History I argued that the 2006 project to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the adoption of the name ‘Labour Party’ by encouraging the writing of local Labour Party histories will be incomplete without the Communist Party dimension. See on www.sslh.org.uk/newsletter%20spring%2005.doc
• I have been advising Battersea Labour Party on its 2006 Project contribution and its project to celebrate its own 100th Anniversary in 2008.

Mutuality, Sustainable Renewal & Radical Politics - Contemporary Debate:

My article ‘Co-operation, Mutuality and Radical Politics’ is contained in the Independent Labour Publications (ILP) pamphlet ‘Co-operatives and Mutuals: The New Challenge.’ Copies available £2.50 (+ 50p p&p): sean.creighton@btinternet.com . It was developed from earlier talks and writing:

• Talk at a Friendly Societies Research Group Conference in April 2001(see below), an extended version of which was published as ’Mutual Associations and the Sustainable Regeneration of Britian’ in my ’History & Social Action’ occasional newsletter (May 2001), and can be read by clicking here.
• Talk at ILP residential weekend May 2001, then published as ‘Collective action and the sustainable renewal of Britain’ in the ILP’s Democratic Socialist: journal (Autumn 2001). www.democraticsocialist.org.uk/dsa3cri.html
• I published an extended version as ‘Mutuality and Radical Politics’ as a History & Social Action Discussion paper.
• An amended version ‘Mutuality & Radical Politics’ was published in the Summer 2002 issue of Democratic Socialist.

For details of ILP see www.the-ilp.org.uk .

Northampton Army Boot Makers March to London

The back of this 1914 postcard states: ‘Band of Northampton Army Boot Makers marching to the War Office to lay before the Secretary of State for War, a request for an enquiry into the Wages paid for Army Boots by certain Firms who are said to have contravened the fair wages clause.

The Band, led by “Commander” Gribble, numbering 115 men (selected from amongst 300 Volunteers), started from Raunds, Northamptonshire, on Monday, May 8th; marched by way of Bedford, Luton, St. Albans, Watford; reached London on Friday May 12th.

The expenses were met by collecting en route, and the party received a most enthusiastic reception at all shopping places.’

Writings on Labour Heritage website

Labour Heritage’s website www.labourheritage.com contains the following notes I have written:

• Events page contains summaries of talks at its events on:
    o Workers’ Education Association in West London
    o Workers’ Education Association in Essex
    o Battersea Socialist Women’s Circle
• 2006 page contains
    o ‘Preparing to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the renaming of the Labour Party (1906)’
• Debates page contains:
    o Why the history of the Labour movement and the Labour Party is important today.
    o The Future of Labour History
    o How should we approach Labour Biography?
• The AGM 2004 link on the AGM 2006 page contains:
    o Introductory remarks at the ‘Race and Labour’ Conference (March 2004)
    o The text of ‘John Archer’ talk
• Bulletin page contains:
    o ‘Labour in Holborn in the 1930s and 1940s’
Other writings:
• ‘Hartley Shawcross (1902-2003)’. Obituary and review of role in Labour Government 1945-51. Labour Heritage Bulletin Spring 2004.

See also:
• Battersea & Wandsworth page
• Kennington, Oval & Vauxhall page
• Public History & Spaces page for some details of the use of song in public demonstrations

Page updated February 2007