Description

Admin History:

Papers collected by Baron Peddie of the City and County of Kingston upon Hull (5 April 1905 - 13 April 1978), who was a member of the Hull Information Committee (Secretary from Aug 1941-1945) and Secretary of the Hull Sunday Association (1920s-1930s).

James Peddie started his work for the Co-operative Society as Publicity Manager in Hull, and later became a leading figure in the Co-operative movement. During the Second World War he served on the Ministries of Information and Food, and was awarded an MBE in 1944. Peddie also served on the national executive of the Co-operative Party and chaired the Party in 1957-1965. He was created Baron Peddie, of the City and County of Kingston upon Hull on 9 February 1961, and served on the Labour benches as a Labour Co-operative peer.

The Ministry of Information [MOI] was formed on 4 Sep 1939, the day after war was declared, and it was responsible for publicity and propaganda. Preparations to form local Information Committees began immediately and Hull's Town Clerk Alexander Pickard was asked to approach political parties and organisations who should be represented on the Committee. The initial meeting was delayed because of MOI restructures and was eventually held on 29 Mar 1940. Councillor Alfred Graham became the Honorary Secretary. The first full meeting was held on 29 August 1941, at which time Mr J M Peddie replaced Councillor Graham and became Committee Secretary.

It was decided that Hull would also have responsibility for parts of the East Riding and so was given the name 'Hull and East Riding Information Committee'. It was later split into two separate entities, one for Hull and one for the East Riding (for which we have no records).

Activities included reporting back to regional office on morale and local events, organising public meetings and visits to Hull by prominent individuals, coordinating post-air raid announcements, as well as supporting local campaigns and overseeing local activities generally. Their work continued throughout the war until the local Information Committees were dissolved in January 1945.

The Hull Sunday Association was formed in January 1883 when members of a bible class who wished to discuss broader and more unorthodox matters formed a separate discussion group. Early discussions were dominated by local and national politics, but matters relating to education and poor law were also discussed. Early lectures were often given by the members themselves but later on external speakers became more common. During the 1900s, activities were more varied and included recreational activities such as musical evenings.

James Peddie was Secretary of the Hull Sunday Association for a period of at least 8 years in the 1920s and 1930s. The Society was active until at least 1942.

Description:

The papers collected by Lord Peddie of the City and County of Kingston upon Hull, consist of two sub-collections; one comprising of material relating to the establishment of the Hull Information Committee and its functions; the second relating to the Hull Sunday Association:

C DIIP/1 comprises files relating to the Hull Information Committee. The material includes correspondence relating to the formation of the Hull and East Riding Committee as well as ongoing activities of the Hull Information Committee during The Second World War. The collection includes Minutes (incomplete run), Secretary's Reports and material on practical arrangements for post-air raid announcements, reporting on home intelligence and specific local issues. It also includes files for activities organised by the Information Committee such as visits to Hull by prominent speakers including Ernest Bevin.

C DIIP/2 comprises of minutes of the Hull Sunday Association for 1891 and 1931-1934, news cuttings, syllabuses and magazines, as well as a programme for Hull Civic Peace week, 1937.