Publications
George Meek: Bath Chair-Man, by George Meek, published 1910 (xxii + 312 pp., New York: E. P. Dutton & Co. and London: Constable) accessible at: & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries View Online
George Meek, the ragged trousered Robert Tressell of Eastbourne, by Clive Griggs, published March 1993 in Labour History Review (vol. 58 issue 1, article, p.37)
Abstract:The article examines the similarities and links between British socialists Robert Tressell, with real name Robert Noonan, author of "The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists" and George Meek, author of "George Meek Bath Chair-Man." Meek was born in Eastbourne on June 1, 1868 and Noonan was either born in the same year or two years later. They both married in the early 1890s and both had one daughter who survived them, namely Kathleen Noonan and Milly Meek. Noonan and Meek both had one book published and each experienced the difficulty of being an active socialist.
George Meek: Labouring Man Protégé of H. G. Wells, by Clive Griggs and Bill Coxall, published 20 December 1996 (559 pp., New Millenium, ISBN-10: 185845073X & ISBN-13: 9781858450735) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries
George Meek's Grandfather, by Geoffrey Barber, published December 2015 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 21 no. 8, article, pp.350-358) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15860] & The Keep [LIB/509026]
Preview:George MEEK (1868-1921) is well known in Eastbourne where he worked as a lowly bath chair-man and lived in poverty for most of his life. He is remembered because he did one amazing thing - he wrote a book about his life for which the well-known author H.G. WELLS wrote an introduction. This guaranteed that it would be a success, which it was in both England and the USA. You are probably thinking "Why H.G. WELLS?" and the answer is that they had met through their common interest in socialism. George had sought H.G. WELLS' advice on writing a book and as there was so little actually written by the working man, H.G. suggested he write about himself, and supported George in his efforts. George's book, published in 1910, is titled "George Meek, Bath Chair-Man, By Himself". His memory was kept alive by Bill COXALL and Clive GRIGGS when they published "George Meek Labouring Man: Protégé of H.G. Wells" in 1996. George has well and truly earned a place in the history of Eastbourne and the fledgling socialist movement.