Talk:Dennis Hird

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I am a novice when it comes to Wiki and HTML (I think that's the code used) so this is a steep learning curve for me, so please forgive any faux-pas I make. James Dennis Hird is a distant cousin of mine and I have spent 10 years writing a biography on him and his KENDALL family roots. I have contributed to the Ruskin College wiki site in the past. JDH he was at the fore front of the drive to educate working class men and the Labour movement. There are a few fleeting references to his role in the Socialist education movement. A biography Dennis Hird : socialist educator and propagandist : first principal of Ruskin College (1999) was written by his grandson Dr John Francis Beatson-Hird and a chapter for him appears in my book The Kendall family of Ashby Lincolnshire (2009). I have further information to contribute, but need to read up on how to upload images etc. I hope I have done this right! MBorrill (talk) 12:11, 25 October 2010 (UTC)

Note The help with formatting etc is welcome as I am novice when it comes to Wikki. BUT I am totally fed up with people making changes to the article which alters the facts! 1. The term Methodist's is the umbrella term that covers all branches of the faith. The KENDALLS and HIRDS were associated with PRIMITIVE Methodism. 2. Dennis was a non collegiate lecturer at Oxford in the late 1870's [not after his resignation in 1899] 3. Dennis was forced to resign as Secretary of CETS, not the Temperance Society [totally different movement]. His resignation was due to his refusal to disassociate himself from the SDF. 4. Dennis was offered a private curacy at Eastnor by Lady Henry Somerset. It was after he continued to publish and give talks on his socialist views [The publication of a Christian with two wives was the final straw] he was asked to resign from Eastnor and then the Church which he did in 1896 not 1899. Initially he was given a small pension by Lady Eastnor but due to an ambiguous clause in the agreement this was soon stopped. Dennis owned a small farm, he continued to write, he had to sell his library, he did some preaching on the Primitive Methodist circuit, Joseph Rowntree also invited Dennis to give a talk in York all to support his family. 5. Ruskin was set up as a working class college with ties to the Unions to provide a University education to working class men and thus aid the Labour movement. Dennis was allocated Socialism [the first person to teach this at University standard] along with evolution and logic. The establishment realised when 26 labour candidates became MP's in 1906, they could no longer control influence the working classes to vote for their political parties and prevent a labour government coming to power. The establishment decided it would be advantageous to educate these working men with their values, to try and gain some control. To do this they wanted to take Ruskin under the control of Oxford University. In 1907 Ruskin Hall became Ruskin College and manoeuvrings within the newly formed committee enabled them to get their 'men' onto the committee and thus dismiss Dennis as they saw him as a threat. MBorrill (talk) 09:07, 30 July 2012 (UTC)

Dennis Hird
The main article states that Hird was a member of the Socialist Education Association (a body not founded until the 1920s after Hird's death). He was a member of the Social Democratic Federation (the English one, which has an article in Wikipedia.) For reference see WW Craik 'Central Labour College', London 1964, p17; John Beatson-Hird, 'Dennis Hird: socialist sducator and propagandist: first principal of Ruskin College', Oxford, 1999, p15. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jhv123 (talk • contribs) 13:27, 17 January 2016 (UTC)