Tom Fox (1860 – 10 August 1934) was a British Labour Party politician. Born to a Catholic family in

Stalybridge Stalybridge () is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 23,731 at the 2011 Census. Historic counties of England, Historically divided between Cheshire and Lancashire, it is east of Manchester city centre and no ...

, Fox worked half-time in a cotton mill from an early age, while attending St Peter's School. He studied at the mechanics institute in his spare time, before leaving the mill due to poor health and working as a shop assistant.All About People: Tittle Tattle
, '' Catholic Press'', 22 November 1934 In about 1875, he joined the King's Liverpool Regiment, serving in India and then fighting in the Third Anglo-Burmese War, where he became a sergeant and was nearly killed. He subsequently retired from the Army and became a labourer. Labour Party, ''Report of the Annual Conference'' (1934), p.65 He worked with

Leonard Hall Leonard Hall may refer to: People * Leonard Hall (boxer) (born 1907), Rhodesian and later South African boxer *Leonard Hall (socialist) (born 1866), British trade unionist and socialist activist * Leonard J. Hall (born 1943), American politician in ...

to form the Manchester Ship Canal Navvies Union in 1888; this became the

British Labour Amalgamation {{short description, Former trade union of the United Kingdom The British Labour Amalgamation was an early union representing construction workers, principally in Manchester area of England. The union was organised during 1888 by Leonard Hall, t ...

, and Fox succeeded Hall as its General Secretary in 1897.Arthur Ivor Marsh, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions, Vol. 5'', p.448-449 He increased the union's membership, to nearly 5,000 by 1913, before leading it in a merger with the National Union of General Workers in 1917. He also served as Secretary, and later as President, of the

Manchester Trades and Labour Council The Manchester Trades Union Council brings together trade union branches in Manchester in England. History Efforts to bring trade unionists together across Manchester go back to the eighteenth century. In 1818 the cotton spinners persuaded othe ...

. Fox was an early activist for the Labour Representation Committee (LRC), and was one of its first local election candidates, in 1902. Although he did not win on that occasion, he was elected to

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the local authority for Manchester, a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester is the sixth largest city in England by population. Its city council is composed of 96 councillors, three ...

in 1904, and remained on the council for many years, becoming an Alderman in 1919, and serving as the first Labour Lord Mayor of Manchester, in 1919/20. Fox was a member of the National Executive Committee of the LRC and its successor, the Labour Party, for many years prior to World War I, and he served as

Chair of the Labour Party The Chair of the Labour Party is a position in the Labour Party of the United Kingdom. The Chair is responsible for administration of the party and overseeing general election campaigns, and is typically held concurrently with another position ...

in 1913/14. He used the opportunity to push the party to adopt more efficient methods of organisation, learning from the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

. Duncan Tanner and Pat Thane, ''Labour's First Century'', p.315

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, Tom 1860 births 1934 deaths Chairs of the Labour Party (UK) Councillors in Manchester King's Regiment (Liverpool) soldiers British trade union leaders Lord Mayors of Manchester People from Stalybridge Military personnel from Manchester