‘Without our brain and muscle not a single wheel will turn’

There are numerous Labour Museums throughout the world; museums which not only celebrate the role working people have played in creating the infrastructure and wealth of a nation, but also the part working people have played in creating society.

In New Zealand/Aotearoa, between the years 1875 and 1935, working people struggled for a political voice. The struggle went through various phases, from International Workers of the World (Wobblies) union radicalism, to Communism, to parliamentary struggle. The struggle eventually brought to power the 1935 Labour government, which in the following decade, set in place a social democratic fabric which has become fundamental to the New Zealand way of life.

The small coal mining communities of the West Coast played a significant part in the early years of this struggle, and in the town of Blackball, a national union structure was forged. It is appropriate then that this should be the site of the Museum project.

We invite you to look through our past and future projects, feedback your comments and to become a Friend and/or Donor of the project. We already have items for sale; and each year, we celebrate Mayday.