Henry Harvey Vivian

Henry Harvey Vivian
Vivian in May 1913
Personal details
Born	(1911-10-20)October 20, 1911 Cornwood, England
Died	May 30, 1930(1930-05-30) (aged 62)

Henry Harvey Vivian (20 April 1868 – 30 May 1930) was an English trade unionist, and Liberal Party politician and campaigner for industrial democracy and co-partnership, especially noted for his work in co-partnership housing.

Vivian was born in Cornwood, Devon, not far from Dartmoor, the son of William Henry Vivian, a carpenter. He was educated at the local Church of England or 'national' school and following a period as an apprentice to a local carpenter, he moved to London for work. In August 1894, he married Harriett Helen Sturgeon, the daughter of an Inland Revenue supervisor. Together with their daughter they lived in Burgoyne Road, Harringay.

Vivian's spiritual beliefs appear to have been very much in line with his political ones. John Burns, on opening a new recreation ground at Brentham in June 1908, described him as a practical mystic

Like his father, Vivian was a carpenter by trade and became an active trade union organiser. He was for a time President of the Pimlico Society of Carpenters and Joiners.

He was a strong believer in the ideals of the cooperative movement being a member of the Central Board of the Cooperative Congress for the London region and of co-partnership in industry and society which he believed made industrial harmony more likely as employees gained a direct stake in the ownership and success (through profit-sharing) of the companies for which they worked. He was a leader in the co-partnership housing movement, a campaigning secretary of the Labour Co-partnership Association, chairman of the Co-partnership Tenants’ Housing Council and of Co-partnership Tenants Ltd. He also co-founded and edited the journal Labour Co-partnership.