In 1889, Samuel Winkworth Silver’s rubber and electrical factory

was the site of a massive worker revolt that upended the London

industrial district which bore his name: Silvertown. Once referred

to as the “Abyss” by Jack London, Silvertown was notorious for

oppressive working conditions and the relentless grind of production

suffered by its largely unorganized, unskilled workers. These

workers, fed-up with their lot and long ignored by traditional craft

unions, aligned themselves with the socialist-led “New Unionism”

movement. Their ensuing strike paralyzed Silvertown for three

months. The strike leaders— including Tom Mann, Ben Tillett,

Eleanor Marx, and Will Thorne—and many workers viewed the

trade union struggle as part of a bigger fight for a “co-operative

commonwealth.” With this goal in mind, they shut down Silvertown

and, in the process, helped to launch a more radical, modern

labor movement.

Historian and novelist John Tully, author of the monumental social

history of the rubber industry The Devil’s Milk, tells the story

of the Silvertown strike in vivid prose. He rescues the uprising—

overshadowed by other strikes during this period—from relative

obscurity and argues for its significance to both the labor and socialist

movements. And, perhaps most importantly, Tully presents

the Silvertown Strike as a source of inspiration for today’s workers,

in London and around the world, who continue to struggle for better

workplaces and the vision of a “co-operative commonwealth.”