The whereabouts of the records of the Blackburn branch of the Independent Labour Party are unknown. Without them it is difficult to write a comprehensive history of that organisation, yet some account of its work, and the contribution Johnnie Duxbury, born 9th December 1907, died 28th October 1993, made to it, is possible by using a variety of other sources. Although some aspects of what follows are speculative, based on evidence that is still circumstantial, others can be corroborated from newspaper articles, artefacts and the oral tradition preserved by Johnnie Duxbury’s family. A life recovered in this contingent way also throws light on the local fortunes of the ILP at a critical moment in its history, when the zenith of its influence was followed by its rapid collapse.
