The union was founded by
Thomas Halliday and
William Pickard, two miners' union agents who had grown disillusioned with the cautious approach of the
Miners' National Union (MNU) of
Alexander Macdonald. In contrast, they placed an emphasis on being a centralised union, offering systematic support for local strikes. Founded on 23 August 1869, Halliday served as its president, and he called a national conference for January 1870. The 1870 conference attracted delegates from Wales and Staffordshire, in addition to Lancashire, and established it as a national organisation. While differing from Macdonald's union, it was happy to collaborate on matters of mutual agreement, and Macdonald spoke at several AAM conferences. The last great industrial battle fought by the AAM was in 1874 but Halliday's hardline stance was rejected by the majority of his followers. Thereafter the AAM went into rapid decline. By 1875, it was bankrupt. In 1877, a new Amalgamated Association of Miners was formed, based on the surviving districts in South Wales. Halliday was again secretary, while
William Abraham was president, and Edward Williams of Aberdare was treasurer. Although Halliday devoted three years to the union, it was unsuccessful. ==Districts==