Operative Collection

Plumstead Common Road, showing (on the right, with the clock tower), the newly opened " Links" (1904) branch of the Royal Arsenal Co-Operative Society, still a " Co-Op" today

Trades union membership certificate
A trades union membership certificate for the United Operative Plumbers Association of Great Britain and Ireland, with Defence and Defiance as their motto

Robert Owen / New Harmony
New Harmony, Indiana, USA. Robert Owen established an experimental co-operative community to compliment his ideas for social reform. The project failed in 1928

Aveling Porter Steamroller Outside Co-operative Shop, England. Date: 1900s

Kim Philby, Soviet double agent C013 / 5334
Kim Philby (1912-1988). Portrait of the Soviet double agent Harold Adrian Russell Kim Philby (centre) with his wife Rufina

Wordsworth / Hawkshead
A corner of the Square, and tiny Methodist chapel, which has been operative since 1862, at Hawkshead, Cumbria, the village where William Wordsworth lived as a boy

Cartoon of Spy by T P O'Connor
3077566 Cartoon of Spy by T P O'Connor; (add.info.: Cartoon of Spy by Thomas Power O'Connor (1848-1929) a journalist, an Irish nationalist political figure

Daily log of a Pinkerton operative recording witnesses interviewed. Pinkerton's National Detective Agency
527941 Daily log of a Pinkerton operative recording witnesses interviewed. Pinkerton's National Detective Agency, American private detective

Power loom for weaving cotton, c.1840 (engraving)
538588 Power loom for weaving cotton, c.1840 (engraving); (add.info.: Power loom for weaving cotton. Model illustrated is that invented by Roberts (c1815-20)

United States Air Force - Beechcraft QU-22B 69-7702 (msn EB-10) The QU-22B was developed as very quiet un-piloted relay station for the Igloo White movement detection system deployed on the Ho Chi

Robert Owen - New Harmony, Indiana, USA
New Harmony, Indiana, USA. Robert Owen established an experimental co-operative community to compliment his ideas for social reform. The project failed in 1828. Date: 1838

Advert, Co-Operative Tea is filling the Nation's Teapot

Advert,s Moss, Druggist and Chemist, Cheltenham
Advert,s Moss, Druggist, Operative & Experimental Chemist, High Street, Cheltenham. Date: 1826

Members of NUTGW campaigning
Members of NUTGW (National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers), NATSOPA (National Society of Operative Printers and Assistants)

Ian Mikardo, British Labour politician
Ian Mikardo (1908-1993), nicknamed Mik, British Labour and Co-operative politician, a left-wing backbench MP for four decades in the House of Commons, and a Zionist

Operative-tactical rocket during an army parade (colour photo)
3638412 Operative-tactical rocket during an army parade (colour photo) by German Photographer (20th Century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Operative-tactical rocket during an army parade)

Workmens Co-operative Dwellings, Edinburgh (engraving)
6008159 Workmens Co-operative Dwellings, Edinburgh (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Workmens Co-operative Dwellings, Edinburgh)

Different processes employed in the manufacture of blankets in modern factories (b / w photo)
6008292 Different processes employed in the manufacture of blankets in modern factories (b/w photo) by English Photographer

The Royal Exchange Co-operative Restaurant & Wine Supply Association Ltd (engraving)
609805 The Royal Exchange Co-operative Restaurant & Wine Supply Association Ltd (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

The Communist refugees Co-operative Kitchen in Newman Passage (engraving)
614511 The Communist refugees Co-operative Kitchen in Newman Passage (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Hat factory workers, Southwark, London 1841
Hat factory workers making beaver (or bever) hats at the Christy hat factory in Southwark, London. 1841

Tow carding in a Yorkshire flax mill. Date: 1843

Doubling the drawings in a Yorkshire flax mill. Date: 1843

Carpet shearing machine in a Glasgow carpet factory
Woman operating a carpet shearing machine in a Glasgow carpet factory. Date: 1843

HQ General Maxwell Taylor Hiesville Normandy
This 101st US Airborne Division HQ had been chosen from a map while the troops were still in England and the headquarters was operative by 0900 hours on 6 June 1944

Box label, Royal Knight Californian Fruit
Box label, Royal Knight, Redlands Co-Operative Fruit Association, Redlands, California, USA

Metal Check Receipt, Royal Arsenal Co-Operative Society, WW2
Metal Check Receipt, Royal Arsenal Co-Operative Society, Powis Street, Woolwich, SE London, for half year ended 6 January 1945. Date: 1945

Advert,s Moss, Druggist, Operative & Experimental Chemist, High Street, Cheltenham. 1826

Farmers in France cultivating the ground after World War One were finding unexploded projectiles. In this drawing you can see a operator with a telephone receiver (microphone)

Equipment to operate the lift system on the Eiffel Tower, c. 1888 (photo)
2652826 Equipment to operate the lift system on the Eiffel Tower, c.1888 (photo) by French Photographer, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Hat factory workers, Southwark, London 1841
Hat factory workers making beaver (or bever) hats at the Christy hat factory in Southwark, London. Men employed in wetting, rolling, pressing ruffling and blocking the hat bodies. Date: 1841

Street scene, Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa
Street scene with the Co-Operative Wholesale Society Limited, Cotton Department, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa. Date: circa 1915

Woman operating machine in factory, (B&W)

Tobacco Stall in Market
Tobacconists stall in a Co-operative market selling cigars, cigarettes, snuff and other forms of tobacco Date: 1909

Co-operative Society, Drighlington, Yorkshire
Co-operative Society, Drighlington, Bradford, near Morley, Yorkshire, England. Date: 1900s

High Street, Leven, Fifeshire
High Street, Leven, near Glenrothes/Kirkaldy, Fifeshire, Scotland. Reform Co-operative Society Date: 1900s

Village of Belsay, Northumberland, England
The Village of Belsay, Northumberland, England. On the right can be seen the Belsay Branch of the Ashington Industrial Co-operative Society Limited. Date: circa 1910s

Co-operative Society Parade, Birkenhead, Lancashire
Co-operative Society Parade, Birkenhead, near Liverpool, Lancashire, England. Date: 1914

Industrial Co-operative Society Milk Advertising Lorry, Darlington, County Durham, England. Date: 1920s

Shop-front - Premises of the Co-operative Society, Birkenhea
Shop-front/Premises of the Co-operative Society, Birkenhead, Lancashire, England. Date: 1900s

Wartime Paper Recycling
In Holt, a Wiltshire village, Lady Cecilie Goff and members of the Womens Co-Operative Guild check sacks of paper collected to be recycled in order that it might be used in munitions manufacture

Rochefort Lighting Up
HENRI ROCHEFORT French radical journalist and politician, lighting the first furnace in a workers co-operative glassworks at Albi. Date: 1830 - 1913

Woman operating machine in factory, (B&W), portrait, low angle view

Co-operative Wholesale Societies - London - Tea Department
English and Scottish - Co-operative Wholesale Societies - London Tea Department Warehouse. Date: circa 1905

Picture No. 10760814
Morocco - Pottery production in the potters co-operative of Tamegroute, a well-known pottery centre. Date:

Picture No. 10856550
Hyaena - pack behaviour, co-operative feeding / hunting (Crocuta crocuta) Date:

Power loom for weaving cotton. Model illustrated is that invented by Roberts (c1815-20). Belting connecting to drive shaft is shown at centre back of picture. Female operative. Wood engraving c1840

Steam-powered sewing machine designed by C. T. Judkin of Manchester in use at Holloway & Co
Steam-powered sewing machine designed by C.T. Judkin of Manchester in use at Holloway & Co.s clothing factory, Stroud, Gloucestershire. Holloways introduced division of labour in their factory

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"Operative: A Journey through History, Politics, and Trade Unions" Step into the past with a trades union membership certificate as your guide. Follow Plumstead Common Road to discover the legacy of Robert Owen and his utopian experiment in New Harmony. Marvel at the sight of an Aveling Porter Steamroller outside a Co-operative Shop, symbolizing progress and unity. Uncover secrets hidden in plain sight, like Kim Philby's double-agent persona as Soviet agent C013/5334. Explore Wordsworth's Hawkshead and immerse yourself in the poetic beauty that inspired him. Witness the power of advertising with slogans like "Co-Operative Tea is filling the Nation's Teapot" or Moss, Druggist and Chemist enticing customers in Cheltenham. Join members of NUTGW on their passionate campaigns for workers' rights, fighting for justice amidst adversity. Encounter Ian Mikardo, a British Labour politician who championed social equality throughout his career. Feel the thrill of espionage as you delve into classified documents revealing United States Air Force's Beechcraft QU-22B 69-7702 missions during covert operations. From historical milestones to political movements, "Operative" takes you on a captivating journey through time where trade unions shaped societies and individuals fought for change.