Henry Boothman (5 February 1875''1939 England and Wales Register'' – 25 April 1953) 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 union 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 ...

leader. Born in

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for to ...

, Boothman moved with his family to

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 ...

when he was six years old, and he began working as a half-time in a local cotton mill when he was ten. He later became a minder at the mill, and relocated to

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

when his parents died. In 1898, he began working full-time for the Oldham Operative Spinners' Association. 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 ...

, Boothman served on the Cotton Control Board, and in 1916, he was elected as the General Secretary of the Amalgamated Association of Operative Cotton Spinners. Around the same time, he won election as treasurer of the

United Textile Factory Workers' Association The United Textile Factory Workers' Association (UTFWA) was a trade union federation in Great Britain. It was active from 1889 until 1975. Objectives The federation was founded in 1889, to represent the various textile workers' unions in polit ...

and, in 1919, he was elected to the

Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress The Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress was the leading body of the British trade union movement from 1871 until 1921. History The Trades Union Congress (TUC) was established in 1868 and formed a committee to act on its decisions a ...

(TUC), and continued on its replacement, the General Council. In 1922 Boothman was elected as a Labour Councillor in Oldham Council's St Pauls Ward for Labour, benefitting from a three way split in a Conservative, Liberal, Labor contest. He did not contest the seat again in 1924. From 1925 to 1929, he served on the Board of Trade Committee."Obituary: Henry Boothman", ''Annual Report of the 1953 Trades Union Congress'', p.287 He also served as honorary treasurer of the

. Boothman served on the General Council of the TUC until 1936; during this time, he was asked to become chairman and President of the TUC, but he refused, on the grounds that this would require him to spend too much time away from the Lancashire base of his union. He served on the Cotton Board during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, but resigned from all his posts in 1943, after suffering from poor health. He died ten years later.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boothman, Henry 1875 births 1953 deaths General secretaries of the Amalgamated Association of Operative Cotton Spinners Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress Members of the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress