Class Encounters: Thomas Hepburn, pitmen’s union leader

In the final part of our series on meetings with figures from labour history, Quentin Outram tells the story of miners’ leader Thomas Hepburn’s encounter with mine owner Lord Londonderry, and the two men’s very different lives. Thomas Hepburn (1796-1864) and Charles William Vane, formerly Stewart, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, KG, GCB, GCH, PC (1778-1854) ‘Where is this great man of yours, your leader Hepburn?’ … Continue reading Class Encounters: Thomas Hepburn, pitmen’s union leader

Class Encounters: George Julian Harney, Chartist journalist

In the third of our series on meetings with figures from labour history, Mark Crail encounters George Julian Harney, editor of the Northern Star and Red Republican. On a bitterly cold Christmas Day 1840, George Julian Harney walked eighteen miles across North-East Scotland from Elgin to Keith in the hope of reviving the town’s Chartist Association. But when he got there, no lecture room could … Continue reading Class Encounters: George Julian Harney, Chartist journalist

Class Encounters: John Auty, miners’ trade union activist

If you could meet one person from labour history, who would it be? We asked labour historians to tell us who they would invite for a cup of tea, a pint at the pub or even Christmas Dinner. In the first of a new series, Joe Stanley encounters miners’ union activist John Auty I first encountered John Auty when he was named ‘Paymaster General’ of … Continue reading Class Encounters: John Auty, miners’ trade union activist

NUM archives project hits milestone with Women Against Pit Closures and predecessor union indexes online

Work to index the records of the National Union of Mineworkers and its predecessor unions has hit an important milestone, with more than a dozen catalogues now searchable online. In addition to the trade unions listed below, catalogues have also been completed for Women Against Pit Closures, including financial information for the period of the 1984-85 strike, and organisational records from 1984 to 1995, and, … Continue reading NUM archives project hits milestone with Women Against Pit Closures and predecessor union indexes online

Video: Remembering the Strike: the miners’ strike of 1984-5 in popular memory

Dr Natalie Thomlinson delivered the Society’s third annual John Halstead Memorial Lecture, Remembering the Strike: the miners’ strike of 1984-5 in popular memory at the University of Huddersfield on Saturday 9 November 2024. The lecture can be viewed on YouTube here. Dr Thomlinson is Associate Professor of Modern British Cultural History at the University of Reading, and co-author of Women and the Miners’ Strike (2023). She has … Continue reading Video: Remembering the Strike: the miners’ strike of 1984-5 in popular memory

Sources for the 1984-85 miners’ strike

The Society for the Study of Labour History has created a resource pack and guide to sources on the history of the 1984-85 miners’ strike. Compiled by the Society’s Archives and Resources Committee, the guide includes information on the major archives and their holdings on this topic. Updated February 2025. Download it in PDF format. Find out more about the SSLH-Archives and Resources Committee. Continue reading Sources for the 1984-85 miners’ strike

In search of Striking Women: can you help find the exhibition?

Forty years ago Brenda Prince was one of four women photographers commissioned to do an exhibition titled Striking Women. Made up of more than 40 large black and white panels, it was shown at the Photographers Gallery in London in 1985 – but has since disappeared. Now, with the anniversary of the miners’ strike very much to the fore, Ms Prince is trying to track … Continue reading In search of Striking Women: can you help find the exhibition?

Inside the South Wales Miners’ Library

We have a new page on the website setting out the collections in the South Wales Miners’ Library and how these can be accessed. The library holds collections relevant to the social and cultural histories of industrial South Wales. Key periods covered by the collection include the Spanish Civil War, the nationalisation of coal and the 1984-5 strike. Holdings on these subjects span various resources, … Continue reading Inside the South Wales Miners’ Library