Telling the match girls' story
In the summer of 1888, trouble was brewing in the East End of London: 1,400 Bryant & May 'match girls' were preparing to walk out on strike in protest over terrible conditions and wages. Their employer was one of the richest in the area but paid workers a pittance. The match girls also risked 'phossy jaw', phosphorus poisoning that made the jaw bone decay and led to a painful death.
The women won improvements to their pay and conditions. In so doing, believes Louise Raw of London Metropolitan University's Working Lives Research Institute, they inspired others, which led to the birth of the modern union movement. However, their courage has still not been properly recognised.
Louise wants to trace descendants of those 1888 strikers, or anyone with family tales about the strike, so that the match girls' story can be rewritten – this time, from their point of view.
Anyone who can help should e-mail Louise Raw on l.raw@londonmet.ac.uk or ring her on 01727 831 620. You can read more about her work on the match girls on her research page.
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