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12 Richard Oastler |
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| Richard
Oastler (1789-1861) was born in Leeds and became steward
of Fixby Hall in Huddersfield, but his statue is here
because most of the money raised for it by national public subscription
came from Bradford. Although he was opposed to universal suffrage
and to trade unions, he did believe it was a class responsibility
to protect the vulnerable. He was impressed by John
Wood,
a Bradford worsted merchant of Horton Hall, Little |
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Horton Lane, who agonised over the need to employ children in his
factory. He became leader of the Ten Hour Movement to
improve the plight of the factory children. He campaigned for legislation
to restrict child labour, despite virulent opposition from most factory
owners. In a letter to the Bradford Observer, 17 July
1834, he described the children as 'poor infant slaves'. |
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own employer dismissed him on a financial charge, of which he was
later cleared. Even so, he spent three years in prison. As a result
of his constant efforts his health deteriorated. However, he lived
to see significant improvements in child working conditions, the Ten
Hours Act coming into force in 1848. |
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| 13
W E Forster |
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E Forster (1818 -1886): William Forster was elected
MP for Bradford in 1861 and remained so until he died.
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came to live in Bradford in his early 20’s and built up a woollen
manufacturing business. He was known for his concern for the workers.
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| Born
of Quaker parents, he accompanied his father to Ireland as distributor
of the Friends’ relief fund for the famine in Connemara
(1846-7). He was
deeply impressed and saddened by the state of that country. In 1881,
he was appointed to the unenviable position of Secretary to the Viceroy
of Ireland at the height of the troubles. |
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he had guided a Bill through Parliament that laid the foundations
for a National School System. The 1870 Elementary
Education Act provided for schools, paid for out of local
government rates, ‘to fill up the gaps’ in the voluntary
school system, then mainly provided by the Christian denominations.
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'public' schools were to be run by elected local School Boards and
were under State inspection. Forster said that his aim was
‘to bring elementary education within the reach of every
English home’. |
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is another local person who made a national difference. |
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| Forster
Square is named after him, but his bronze statue has been
placed in storage during the redevelopment of the Forster Square and
Broadway area. |
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14
Independent Labour Party |
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| Independent
Labour Party: The large mural, clearly visible on the north
side of Leeds Road near the city centre (on the wall of the Priestley
Theatre, in Little Germany) says: |
| 'Celebrating
the formation of the Independent Labour Party at Bradford January
13th 1893. ‘There is no weal save Commonweal' |
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Bradford Independent Labour Party was born out of the Manningham
Mills strike of 1890 (see
site 27) and gave birth to a nation-wide organisation
two years later. The National ILP was led by Keir
Hardie and had its inaugural meeting in Bradford at Laycocks
Temperance Hotel, Albion Court, off Kirkgate, now the New Guiseppes
(plaque, Bradford City Heritage Trail). Although not pacifist, it
was against the First World War. It was separate from and always much
more radical than the newly emerging Labour Party, but
played a key role in its creation. |
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| The
ILP’s founder members in Bradford include Fred
Jowett and Margaret Macmillan
(see site 24).
In 1892, Jowett became the first Socialist to be elected to Bradford
Council. A few months later, he founded a branch of the ILP
in Bradford. In the 1900 General Election he was the ILP candidate
for West Bradford. He lost by forty-one votes, possibly because of
his strong opposition to the Boer War. |
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