The Cumberland Iron Ore Miners' and Kindred Trades' Association was a

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

, principally representing iron ore miners in the

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

area of

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

History

Although there were some attempts among iron ore miners in Cumberland to form a union in the 1860s and 1870s, the first successful union was the Dalton and District United Workmen's Association, established in 1882. This affiliated to the

Cumberland Miners' Association The Cumberland Miners' Association was a trade union in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1872 as the West Cumberland Miners' Association, with its aims being the establishment of an eight-hour day, and improved safety. In 1906, it rem ...

, from which Andrew Sharp frequently spoke in its support. Despite this, it was unable to successfully organise miners outside

Dalton Dalton may refer to: Science * Dalton (crater), a lunar crater * Dalton (program), chemistry software * Dalton (unit) (Da), the atomic mass unit * John Dalton, chemist, physicist and meteorologist Entertainment * Dalton (Buffyverse), minor ch ...

, leaving the field open for the

National Association of Blastfurnacemen The National Union of Blastfurnacemen, Ore Miners, Coke Workers and Kindred Trades (NUB) was a trade union in England and Wales which existed between 1888 and 1985. It represented process workers in the British iron and steel industry. History ...

. The Blastfurnacemen did build up membership among iron ore miners in the area, but struggled to operate as a national union. As part of a restructure which formed the

National Federation of Blastfurnacemen The National Union of Blastfurnacemen, Ore Miners, Coke Workers and Kindred Trades (NUB) was a trade union in England and Wales which existed between 1888 and 1985. It represented process workers in the British iron and steel industry. History ...

, in 1891 the Cumberland iron ore miners registered their own union, the West Cumberland Workmen's Association. It had about 800 members and, despite its name, was restricted to iron ore miners. It worked with the Cumberland Miners, the Cumberland County Colliery Enginemen's Association, local branches of the Blastfurnacemen and also some branches of the Typographical Association in the Cumberland and North Lancashire Federation. Over time, the union settled on a structure of seven branches, in

Cleator Moor Cleator Moor is a town and civil parish in Cumbria, England, within the historic county of Cumberland. It had a population of 6,936 at the 2011 census. Below Dent Fell, the town is on the Coast to Coast Walk that spans Northern England. ...

, Egremont,

Frizington Frizington is a village in Cumbria, England, historically part of Cumberland, near the Lake District National Park. Historically, it was a collection of farms and houses, but became a unified village as a result of the mining (both coal and ...

, Kirkland, Moor Row,

Rowrah Rowrah is a village in Cumbria, England, and spans the civil parishes of Arlecdon and Frizington and Lamplugh. The majority of Rowrah is within Arlecdon and Frizington. The parish boundaries are formed from the Windergill Beck and Colliergate B ...

, and

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It i ...

, and by 1907 membership had grown to 2,500. In about 1894, James Flynn was appointed as general secretary of the union. By 1907, he had become frustrated with its structure, where each branch had a high degree of autonomy, and elected one member of its council for each 100 members of the branch. He proposed a reorganisation wherein each mine would become its own lodge and elected one delegate of the council. Much of the existing council opposed this change, in particular those from the large branch at Egrement, and the union voted to give Flynn notice. In place of Flynn, the union appointed Thomas Gavan Duffy as its general secretary. Gavan Duffy was a member of the

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse working-class candidates ...

who had recently been on a speaking tour of Cumberland. The union's members voted 1,644 to 108 for his appointment, but Flynn refused to recognise him, or hand over account books and the union banner. Flynn used the union's office to set up a rival National Iron Ore Miners' Association, with his supporters, this union gaining favour with mine owners by proving more flexible in negotiations. Gavan Duffy initially worked from temporary offices in Moor Row, and successfully rebuilt the union. He invested some funds in the Workington Iron and Steel Company, through this mechanism gaining accurate information on the finances of the mine owners. By 1914, the union was able to open new offices in Bowthorn. At the 1918 UK general election, it sponsored Gavan Duffy as a Labour Party candidate in

. Although he did not win on this occasion, he won the seat in

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

, holding it until the 1924 UK general election. While the union long remained a member of the National Federation of Blastfurnacemen, when in 1909 the federation became the more centralised

National Federation of Blastfurnacemen, Ore Miners and Kindred Trades The National Union of Blastfurnacemen, Ore Miners, Coke Workers and Kindred Trades (NUB) was a trade union in England and Wales which existed between 1888 and 1985. It represented process workers in the British iron and steel industry. History ...

, the union chose to remain independent. Its membership rebounded, reaching 3,000 by 1926. The Blastfurnacemen continued to try to interest the union in a merger, but in 1929, against their protests, the Iron Ore Miners voted 2,005 to 216 to merged into the National Union of General and Municipal Workers.

Election results

The union sponsored Gavan Duffy as a Labour Party candidate in several Parliamentary elections. {, class="wikitable sortable" ! Election !! Constituency !! Candidate !! Votes !! Percentage !! Position , - , 1918 general election , ,

, , , , 9,016 , , 45.6 , , 2 , - , 1922 general election , ,

, , , , 10,935 , , 45.3 , , 1 , - , 1923 general election , ,

, , , , 12,419 , , 53.0 , , 1 , - , 1924 general election , ,

, , {{sortname, Thomas, Gavan Duffy , , 11,741 , , 47.2 , , 2

General Secretaries

:1894: James Flynn :1907: Thomas Gavan Duffy

References

Trade unions established in 1891 Trade unions disestablished in 1929 GMB (trade union) amalgamations Mining trade unions Mining in Cumbria Trade unions based in Cumbria