University of London Archives | Details | Al Richardson / Jim Higgins papers

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Actions Help FAQs Can't find what you're looking for? Browse Collections A-Z University of London	Al Richardson / Jim Higgins papers Remove from selection Add to selection Request this item TitleAl Richardson / Jim Higgins papers Held atSenate House Library, University of London Reference codeMS1117 Datecirca 1884-2003 Creator Richardson, Alec Stuart (1941-2003) socialistMore Info on CreatorLess Info on Creator Al Richardson was born to a religious, mining family in Barnsley in 1941. After university, he lectured at Exeter University and then became a history teacher in London. Richardson's politics were Trotskyist: he was a member of the Socialist Labour League, the International Marxist Group (IMG) and he was also involved in the Institute of Workers' Control. Richardson was expelled from the IMG at the end of the 1960s and co-founded the Chartist Group, which aimed to encourage revolutionary tendencies amongst the left of the Labour Party. Richardson worked with Sam Bornstein on histories of British Trotskyism and, in so doing, amassed a large archive. Two books were published in 1986 on the subject as a result of this research: Against the Stream, and War and the International. Al Richardson was also a member of the board of Socialist Platform Limited, which organised the deposit of this archive. Higgins, James Robert (1930-2002) socialistMore Info on CreatorLess Info on Creator Jim Higgins was born in Harrow in 1930. He joined the Young Communist League at the age of 14 and left school two years later. He joined the Post Office as a telecommunications engineer and became active in the Post Office Engineering Union (POEU) and the Communist Party. He left the latter in 1956 after the invasion of Hungary by the Soviet Union. Higgins joined the Socialist Labour League and then, at the end of the 1950s, the Socialist Review Group. By the 1960s, Higgins was the secretary of the International Socialists (IS). Higgins gave up his work as a POEU branch secretary in the early 1970s to become the full-time national secretary of the IS. He left the Socialist Workers Party (the former IS) in 1977 and became a journalist. His political memoir, More years for the Locust, was published in 1997. Scope and ContentSpartacists League / Workers Vanguard pamphlets and papers, 1964-2001; International Socialists minutes, circulars, discussion papers, 1960s-1970s; Workers Power bulletins, circa 1975-1992; Socialist Review minutes, 1952-6; Workers Socialist League papers, c.1977-1983; Socialist Labour League minutes, circulars, pamphlets, 1960s; International Marxist Group papers, 1963-1967; Trotskyist journals and pamphlets from the United States, United Kingdom, Chile, India, Ceylon / Sri Lanka, France, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Italy, and other countries, 1930s-2003; Workers Fight, 1987-2003; Post Office Engineering Union minutes, journals, correspondence, 1960s-1970s; drafts of autobiography of Harry McShane and interviews with him, c.1970s; letters relating to Hugo Dewar, Harry Wicks and Reg Groves. Conditions governing accessOpen for research although individual files may be subject to restrictions under the Freedom of Information Act. Files need to be ordered at least 48 hours in advance. Extent265 boxes System of ArrangementThe boxes have been left in the order they were deposited in. There is no Box 103, which was found to be empty when the material was listed, and no Box 107, which was a run of periodicals transferred to SHL Modern Collections. Finding aidsA box list, mostly to file-level, is attached to this description. These descriptions (up to box 116 inclusive) are also part of the online archives catalogue. Related files Word catalogue and box list Level of descriptionfonds Hierarchy browser contains 524 parts Al Richardson / Jim Higgins papers MS1117 \| circa 1884-2003 fonds

TitleAl Richardson / Jim Higgins papers

Held atSenate House Library, University of London

Reference codeMS1117

Datecirca 1884-2003

Creator
- Richardson, Alec Stuart (1941-2003) socialistMore Info on CreatorLess Info on Creator
  Al Richardson was born to a religious, mining family in Barnsley in 1941. After university, he lectured at Exeter University and then became a history teacher in London. Richardson's politics were Trotskyist: he was a member of the Socialist Labour League, the International Marxist Group (IMG) and he was also involved in the Institute of Workers' Control. Richardson was expelled from the IMG at the end of the 1960s and co-founded the Chartist Group, which aimed to encourage revolutionary tendencies amongst the left of the Labour Party. Richardson worked with Sam Bornstein on histories of British Trotskyism and, in so doing, amassed a large archive. Two books were published in 1986 on the subject as a result of this research: Against the Stream, and War and the International. Al Richardson was also a member of the board of Socialist Platform Limited, which organised the deposit of this archive.
- Higgins, James Robert (1930-2002) socialistMore Info on CreatorLess Info on Creator
  Jim Higgins was born in Harrow in 1930. He joined the Young Communist League at the age of 14 and left school two years later. He joined the Post Office as a telecommunications engineer and became active in the Post Office Engineering Union (POEU) and the Communist Party. He left the latter in 1956 after the invasion of Hungary by the Soviet Union. Higgins joined the Socialist Labour League and then, at the end of the 1950s, the Socialist Review Group. By the 1960s, Higgins was the secretary of the International Socialists (IS). Higgins gave up his work as a POEU branch secretary in the early 1970s to become the full-time national secretary of the IS. He left the Socialist Workers Party (the former IS) in 1977 and became a journalist. His political memoir, More years for the Locust, was published in 1997.

Scope and ContentSpartacists League / Workers Vanguard pamphlets and papers, 1964-2001; International Socialists minutes, circulars, discussion papers, 1960s-1970s; Workers Power bulletins, circa 1975-1992; Socialist Review minutes, 1952-6; Workers Socialist League papers, c.1977-1983; Socialist Labour League minutes, circulars, pamphlets, 1960s; International Marxist Group papers, 1963-1967; Trotskyist journals and pamphlets from the United States, United Kingdom, Chile, India, Ceylon / Sri Lanka, France, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Italy, and other countries, 1930s-2003; Workers Fight, 1987-2003; Post Office Engineering Union minutes, journals, correspondence, 1960s-1970s; drafts of autobiography of Harry McShane and interviews with him, c.1970s; letters relating to Hugo Dewar, Harry Wicks and Reg Groves.

Conditions governing accessOpen for research although individual files may be subject to restrictions under the Freedom of Information Act. Files need to be ordered at least 48 hours in advance.

Extent265 boxes

System of ArrangementThe boxes have been left in the order they were deposited in. There is no Box 103, which was found to be empty when the material was listed, and no Box 107, which was a run of periodicals transferred to SHL Modern Collections.

Finding aidsA box list, mostly to file-level, is attached to this description. These descriptions (up to box 116 inclusive) are also part of the online archives catalogue.

Related files

Word catalogue and box list

Level of descriptionfonds

Item request date
Expected return date
Destination