The Showmen's Guild of Great Britain (Established 1889)
Dates
- Existence: Established 1889
Biography
The United Kingdom Van Dwellers Association was founded in 1889 with the purpose of fighting the Moveable Dwellings Bill of 1888.
Between 1884 and 1891 George Smith attempted to legislate the movements of all travelling people. The basic tenets of this Bill included the registration of all moveable dwellings, the compulsory school attendance of all Gypsy and van dwellers' children and the introduction of a series of regulations concerning the number of people permitted in a given living space. However, the main recommendation was the power to grant the local council the authority for an officer of the law to enter a van with a warrant, in order to inspect the dwelling for sanitation, health and moral irregularities. These proposals caused widespread anger throughout the travelling fraternity.
Aware of how this would affect the fairground business, in 1889 the leading showmen of the day were contacted through the pages of The Era newspaper and asked to attend a meeting to be held at the Black Lion Hotel in Salford. As a result of this and subsequent gatherings, the Van Dwellers' Protection Association was formed. A membership fund was started and in the first year over five hundred showmen contributed to the cost of fighting George Smith's proposed Bill.
Early founders of the Guild gradually introduced a set of guidelines which eventually formed the basis of the rules and conditions found in the Showmen's Year Books. Throughout the past hundred years the Showmen's Guild has effectively been carrying on the mandate set by the founders in 1889: to separate showpeople from traveller-gypsies and to defend the homes, liberties and way of life of the showpeople of Great Britain. The present day Guild not only represents 95% of the community at both national and local levels, but it also operates a code of conduct within the fairground community.
Until 1907 the Guild was highly centralised, with a 28-strong Executive Committee and an almost equal number of vice-presidents and other offices. In that year it was decided to divide the Executive Committee into seven divisional committees, each having responsibility for a particular region. In 1917 the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain, as it became known, was recognised as the trade association of the travelling funfair business and acquired the right to stand as representatives for the business at both local and national levels; a position it still occupies to this day.
The principal object of the Showmen's Guild has remained the same for over 100 years; to protect the interest of its members, travelling showmen who gain their livelihoods by attending funfairs. It does this in two ways; by its code of Rules and through the constitutional process of the land.
The Guild is organised into ten Sections and is accepted at both national and local levels as the negotiating body for travelling showmen. Through it's parliamentary agent, the Guild contests any proposed legislation that discriminates against its members, or seeks concessions when legislation threatens their ability to make a living. In matters involving local authorities a delegation of officers will usually be called upon to represent member's interests.
Found in 198 Collections and/or Records:
Memorandum on Travelling Fairs, February - March 2000
Memorandum to the Environment Sub-Committee of Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Committee on Travelling Fairs and the inclusion of the showmen in town planning, prepared by David J. Loveday.
Memos and Coming Events Book, 1933
Scrapbook containing coming events, a paper on the original and utility of British fairs including information about legislation and hawkers, pedlars, flash lights, rides and stalls, vehicles, gypsies, animals, penalties, waste, music, dancing and theatre licences, shows, gaming, the education of children and taxation, correspondence with the Town and Country Planning Divisions, the Public Health Act 1936 and the control of moveable dwellings and pleasure fair bye-laws.
Midland Showman's Mutual Agreement Committee Minutes, 1940 - 1951
Bound minutes of meetings in red notebook containing list of chairmen and committee members and discussing arrangements for fairs, subscriptions, accounts, war service, and some attached documents including correspondence related to meetings, the Sixteenth Annual report. Manuscript.
Minutes of Council Meeting of The Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, 1918 - 1928
Bound minutes of meetings in red notebook containing items dicussed on meetings of the Central Council, including rules and regulations, charges, appointments to posts within the Showmen's Guild, fund raising activities and benevolent funds, subscriptions, transport, Licensing, agreements with other organisations and societies, finances, ground leases and Government War Bonds among others. Signed by the Guild's president, Mr Patrick Collins, manuscript.
Minutes of Council Meeting of The Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, 1928 - 1934
Bound minutes of meetings in red notebook containing items dicussed on meetings of the Central Council, including parliamentary bills, complaints and appeals, rules, Hull and other memorial and benevolent funds, nominations to positions within the Guild and resignations, York Fair, the Bolton appeal, the Fairs Bill, official journals and finances among others. Signed by the Guild's presidents, Mr Patrick Collins and Mr W. Wilson, manuscript.
Minutes of Council Meeting of The Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, 1935 - 1940
Minutes of Council Meeting of The Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, 1940 - 1944
Minutes of Council Meeting of The Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, 1944 - 1946
Minutes of Meetings of the Showmen's Guild, 1918 - 1957
Minutes of meetings of the Showmen's Guild comprising Central Council meetings, Special General meetings, Management Committee meetings, Mutual Agreement meetings, Annual and Extraordinary meettins, meetings of the Appeals Committee and War Emergency Committee meetings.
Minutes of Special General Meetings, 1951 - 1957
Bound minutes of meetings in green fabric with red spine and corners containing information on rules, General Secretary reports, accounts, appointments, election of officials and benevolent funds. Signed by the Chairmen Arthur Bates, W. Bagnall and John Collins. Manuscript and typescript.
Minutes of the Annual Meetings and Extraordinary Meetings of Members, 1930 - 1951
Bound minutes of meetings in red notebook containing annual accounts, elections of officials, general secretary's reports, admitance of member's wives in the meetings, accounts, rules, update on deceased members, benevolent funds, war updates among other matters. Signed by the Presidents W. Wilson and B. Hobson and Chairmen J. E. Browne, Charles Thurston, William Pullen and William Lennards. Manuscript.
Minutes of the Appeals Committee Meetings, 1945 - 1946
Bound minutes of meetings in green fabric with red spine and corners containing information on section updates and issues, fairs, appeals and fines among other matters. Signed by the Chairman Charles Thurston. Manuscript.
Minutes of the Management Committee Meetings, 1935 - 1939
Minutes of the Management Committee Meetings, 1939 - 1945
Minutes of the Management Committee Meetings, 1945
Bound minutes of meetings in green fabric with red spine and corners containing information on section updates and issues, supplies, road fund licences, the National Caravan Council, war charity funds, insurance and taxation, ride manufacturing, parliamentary bills, General Secretary's annual reports, accounts, benevolent funds, the National Amusements Council, rules, bye-laws, year books and the roll of honour among other matters. Signed by the Chairman William Lennards. Manuscript.
Minutes of the Report of Proceedings Meetings, 1928
Bound minutes of meetings in red notebook containing balance sheets, bye-laws, parliamentary bills, updates on fairs, information on ongoing memorial funds and appeals, complaints, proposals for alterations to rules, updates on year books and traction owners levy among others. Typescript.
Minutes of the War Emergency Committee Meetings, 1940 - 1945
Moveable Dwellings Bill, 1909
Bound copy of the report on the Moveable Dwellings Bill and proceedings of the committee minutes of evidence and appendices.
National Fairground and Circus Archive Collection
Contains thousands of posters, programmes, photographs, handbills, original documents, specialist journals, newspapers and a library containing publications on all the areas of collecting
Neil Calladine Collection
This collection consists of 6 black and white photographs of fairgrounds and 8 audio cassette recordings of interviews with showpeople from the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Section of the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain.