Wilkinson, Ellen

Ellen Wilkinson (1891-1947) was born in Manchester and educated at Ardwick School. She later studied history at Manchester University. In 1912 she became a member of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) and the following year was recruited as a district organizer. She was also an active trade unionist, member of the Fabian Society and a pacifist.

In the 1924 General Election she was elected to represent Middlesborough East. In the 1931 election Wilkinson opposed the National Government formed by MacDonald and as a result lost her seat. She re-entered Parliament as MP for Jarrow in the 1935 General Election. Jarrow had one of the worst unemployment records in Britain. In 1936 Wilkinson organised a march of 200 unemployed workers from Jarrow to London where she presented a petition to parliament. Wilkinson later wrote an account of the Jarrow Crusade and its outcome called The Town That Was Murdered (1939).

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