Object of the month, May 2010
Ernest Jones commemorative jug
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Ernest Jones was a lawyer, poet, journalist and one of the later leaders of the Chartists. He was born in 1819 in Germany and lived there until he was 19, when his family returned to England. He got married in 1840 and began a career as a barrister. In 1845 he broke away from his career and became an honorary leader of the Chartists. He issued periodicals such as The Labourer, the Northern Star, Notes of the People and the People’s Paper. In 1848 he was arrested for sedition after a lecture in Manchester and sentenced to 2 years solitary confinement at Newgate. Ernest Jones wrote several novels and included his poems and songs in his periodicals. One of his most famous songs is the ‘Song of the low’. Jones died in 1869 in Manchester. This mug was produced as a commemorative item after his death. |
Click here for more detailed information about Ernest Jones
Inaugural Frow memorial lecture
On 1 May 2010 we successfully held the first annual Frow memorial lecture, in memory of the Library’s founders Ruth and Eddie Frow.
The lecture ‘Till the Struggle is O'er: The Poetry of Chartism’ by Dr Mike Sanders, was about Chartist poetry and its importance as an outlet for working class creativity, and as a vital part of Chartism's struggle for fundamental democratic rights.
The lecture included Chartist poems read by Maxine Peake and Chartist songs sung by Corista.