'Minutes of the Last Meeting Passed': The Huddersfield Women's Social and Political Union Minute Book January 1907-1909, a New Source for Suffrage History

The historiography of the militant suffrage campaign organizedby the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) between 1903and 1914 has made increasing use of local and regional studiesin an attempt to reassess the organization from the perspectiveof its grass roots membership. This approach has of necessityrelied on a variety of partial sources as no regional recordsof the WSPU survive. Therefore, the recent deposit of a minutebook for the Huddersfield branch is of great interest to suffragehistorians, even though the document only covers the earliestyears of the branch from 1907 to 1909. This article assessesthe value of the minute book as a source for writing suffragehistory. It discusses how the minutes add to our existing knowledgeof the militant campaign, particularly in understanding therelationship between national headquarters and regional branches,in appreciating the demands belonging to the WSPU made on itsmembers in terms of time, and in the importance of individualpersonal relationships in sustaining a successful suffrage campaign.The article also considers how local and regional historiesof the WSPU have been created without the benefit of minutebooks. Consequently it measures the new findings of the minutebook against the records available in other contemporary sources,such as local newspapers and the national suffrage press, todemonstrate how minute books are useful but ultimately not vitalin reinterpreting the WSPU from the branch level.