John Forman (1823–2 September 1900) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

trade unionist 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 (s ...

. Born at Allerton Burn in

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

, Forman became a

coal miner Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

at an early age. In the 1850s, he moved to Roddymoor in County Durham, where he was elected checkweighman at Grahamsley Colliery.Miners' leaders
, Public Monuments and Sculpture Association He became an active trade unionist, joining the

Durham Miners' Association The Durham Miners' Association (DMA) was a trade union in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded in 1869 and its membership quickly rose to 4,000, but within a year had fallen back to 2,000. In December 1870, William Crawford becam ...

on its formation, and working as its agent for twenty-eight years.William A. Moyes, ''The Banner Book'', p.119 Forman was also involved in mine rescue operations, including the explosions at

Seaham Colliery The Seaham Colliery was a coal mine in County Durham in the North of England. The mine suffered an underground explosion in 1880 which resulted in the deaths of upwards of 160 people, including surface workers and rescuers. Among the dead were ...

in 1871 and 1880. This led him to an interest in mine safety, and he was involved in theoretical work on the ignition of coal dust. Forman was first elected as President of the Durham Miners' Association in 1871, and in 1874, this position was made permanent. He served until his death in 1900.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forman, John 1823 births 1900 deaths British coal miners British trade union leaders Trade unionists from Northumberland