John Frederick Hodgson (10 April 1867 – 1947) was a British socialist activist. Born in York, Hodgson trained as a tailor, becoming a foreman cutter in clothing wholesale. He moved to

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in the 1890s, joining 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 ...

, and then its successor, the

British Socialist Party The British Socialist Party (BSP) was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw t ...

. He was part of the majority in the party which opposed

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, and in 1918, he was elected to its executive. The BSP affiliated to the Labour Party and Hodgson was unsuccessfully nominated for the party's National Executive Committee. He also became its Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for

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, though he did not ultimately stand. In 1920, the BSP became the main constituent of the new

Communist Party of Great Britain The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPG ...

. Hodgson was part of the Joint Provisional Committee which organised the formation, and he then served as the party's first treasurer, and as a member of the executive. He also attended the Conference of the Amsterdam Bureau in 1920.Klugmann, ''History of the Communist Party of Great Britain,'' vol. 1, pg. 49. Hodgson married, had two children, and was widowed early in life. In 1898, he met Anne Holton, and the two began living together, although they did not marry. The two separated in 1921 after Hodgson began an affair, and he was fined £200 for breach of promise. This led him to leave the CPGB in 1922, change his name to Edwin Player, and become the manager of a clothing company.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgson, J. F. 1867 births 1947 deaths British Socialist Party members Communist Party of Great Britain members People from York