W. P. Richardson (trade unionist)

William Pallister Richardson (25 February 1873 – 8 August 1930), known as W. P. Richardson, was a British trade unionist.

Richardson was born in Usworth, County Durham. His father was killed in 1885, while working in the Usworth Colliery. A few months later, William began work in the same pit. He joined the Durham Miners' Association, and became branch secretary in 1898, and was elected to the county executive in 1912. He served as General Secretary of the union from 1924 until his death in 1930 aged 57, and as treasurer of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain from 1921.

Richardson was also an active member of the Independent Labour Party, and its leading member in Usworth. His brother Tom was also active in the party, and was the Member of Parliament for Whitehaven from 1910 to 1918.

References

Hester Barron, The 1926 miners' lockout: meanings of community in the Durham coalfield, p.66
David Howell, British workers and the Independent Labour Party, p.47

Trade union offices
Preceded byJames Robson	Treasurer of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain 1921–1930	Succeeded byPost vacant
Preceded byThomas Cann	General Secretary of the Durham Miners' Association 1924–1930	Succeeded byPeter Lee

v t e Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB) and National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)
Presidents	1889 Pickard 1904 En. Edwards 1912 Smillie 1922 Smith 1929 Richards 1931 Eb. Edwards 1932 Lee 1934 J. Jones 1939 Lawther 1954 E. Jones 1960 Machen 1960 Ford 1971 Gormley 1982 Scargill 2002 Lavery 2012 Wilson
Vice-Presidents	1889 Woods 1909 Smillie 1912 Harvey 1914 House 1917 Smith 1922 Walsh 1924 Richards 1929 Eb. Edwards 1931 Lee 1932 J. Jones 1933 Davies 1934 Lawther 1939 Bowman 1950 E. Jones 1954 T. Jones 1961 Collindridge 1963 Bullough 1969 Schofield 1973 McGahey 1987 Thompson 1989 Vacant 1992 Cave 2002 Stanley 2010 Wilson 2012 Thomas
General Secretaries	1889 Ashton 1919 Hodges 1924 Cook 1932 Eb. Edwards 1946 Horner 1959 Paynter 1968 Daly 1984 Heathfield 1992 Scargill 1992 Vacant? 2002 Kemp 2007 Kitchen
Treasurers	1889 En. Edwards 1904 Abraham 1918 Robson 1921 Richardson
Affiliates and areas	Bristol Cleveland Cokemen Colliery Officials and Staffs Cumberland Derbyshire Durham Forest of Dean Kent Lancashire and Cheshire Leicestershire Midland Counties (Cannock Chase North Staffordshire Old Hill Pelsall Shropshire Warwickshire West Bromwich) Northumberland North Wales Nottinghamshire Scotland (Ayrshire Fife and Kinross Lanarkshire Mid and East Lothian Mid and West Lothian Stirling) Somerset South Derbyshire South Wales Yorkshire
Strikes	1893 1912 1926 1969 1972 1974 1984–1985

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