The Bristol Socialist Society was a political organisation in

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...

. The group originated in 1885 as a local affiliate of the

Social Democratic Federation The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury, James Con ...

. However, in 1886, it instead affiliated to the Socialist Union. When that group disbanded, it continued an independent existence until at least 1914. The society initially enjoyed a high level of success, holding weekly public meetings and a wide variety of other propaganda events. Its members included Katherine St John Conway,

Dan Irving David Daniel "Dan" Irving (31 October 1854 – 25 January 1924) was a British socialist activist and Labour Party Member of Parliament. Born in Birmingham, Irving moved to Bristol in 1875, where he began working on the railways. After he lost ...

, Enid Stacy, John Gregory,

Ernest Bevin Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader, and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union in the years 1922–19 ...

, Samuel George Hobson,

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...

and even

Ben Tillett Benjamin Tillett (11 September 1860 – 27 January 1943) was a British socialist, trade union leader and politician. He was a leader of the "new unionism" of 1889 that focused on organizing unskilled workers. He played a major role in founding ...

References

S. Mullen, ''The Bristol Socialist Society 1885-1914'' Defunct political parties in England History of Bristol Political parties established in 1885 Political organisations based in England {{England-org-stub