Carey Hargreaves (died 11 October 1954) 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. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

trade unionist A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

. Born in

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

, Hargreaves grew up in

Barrowford Barrowford () is a village and civil parish in the Pendle district of Lancashire, England, north of Nelson, near the Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Barrowford is on the Marsden–Gisburn–Long Preston turnpike. One of ...

. He worked as a cotton weaver and became active in the

Nelson Weavers' Association The Nelson Weavers' Association (NWA) was a trade union representing cotton weavers in the area of Nelson, Lancashire. As the main industry in the town, the union has been influential in its history, and some of its leaders became significant n ...

(NWA), serving on its committee for a few years before becoming its assistant general secretary in 1912.Alan and Lesley Fowler, ''The History of the Nelson Weavers' Association'', p.114 During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Hargreaves served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, but he returned to Nelson and his trade union activities after the war, and was elected as general secretary of the NWA in 1928. Immediately after his election, the union was involved in a major dispute over fines and the sacking of its vice-president by his employer. Although the union gained little from the dispute, Hargreaves was considered to have handled it well. Unlike most of the NWA's leadership, Hargreaves was not politically active, and he was sometimes accused of holding back information from his committee. Hargreaves was elected to the central committee of the

Amalgamated Weavers' Association The Amalgamated Weavers' Association, often known as the Weavers' Amalgamation, was a trade union in the United Kingdom. Initially, it operated in competition with the North East Lancashire Amalgamated Weavers' Association in part of its area, ...

in 1930, and then as its president in 1947. He retired in May 1949,Edwin Hopwood, ''A History of the Lancashire Cotton Industry and the Amalgamated Weavers' Association'', p.177 and devoted his remaining years to the Nelson Excelsior Glee Committee, where he indulged his love of music.

References

Year of birth missing 1954 deaths Presidents of the Amalgamated Weavers' Association People from Burnley Military personnel from Lancashire British Army personnel of World War I British Army soldiers {{UK-trade-unionist-bio-stub