New Lanark, Scotland became internationally reknown for pioneering technology and social change in the industrial revolution. The community was created by David Dale (1739-1806) and was used for Robert Owns' social and educational experiments.

This book provides an account of how, in the years 1800-1825, enlightened entrepreneur and budding reformer Robert Owen used his cotton mill village of New Lanark, Scotland, as a test-bed for a set of political intuitions which would later form the bedrock of early socialism in Britain. Drawing from previously unpublished archival sources, this study shows that New Lanark was not merely on the receiving end of Owen’s innovative brand of industrial paternalism, but also acted as a major source of inspiration for many aspects of his social system, including his desire to remodel society along communitarian lines. This book therefore reaffirms the centrality of New Lanark as the cradle of socialism in Britain, and provides a contextualised, social history of Owen’s ideas, tracing direct continuities between his early years as a paternalistic businessman, and his later career as a radical political leader. In doing so, it eschews the myth of New Lanark as a unidimensional ‘model’ village and addresses the ambiguities of Owen’s journey from paternalism to socialism.

From New Lanark to Mound Bayou re-examines the claims that a theoretical and ideological relationship existed between the Scottish manufacturer/reformer Robert Owen and the Mississippi planter Joseph E. Davis, whose former bondsmen later settled the postbellum Mississippi community of Mound Bayou in 1887. Drawing upon existing data as well as new documentation, this work provides an overview of Owenism followed by an outline of Owen's communities in both Scotland and the United States. These examinations of Owen's societies show the influence of his ideas on the Mississippi communities at Davis Bend as well as that of Mound Bayou, the Delta's first entirely African-American town, founded by one of Davis' former slaves. This book examines the many questions left by the adaptations of Owenite thought in Davis' reconfiguration of the slave community at Davis Bend. The book also considers the carryovers from this endeavor at Mound Bayou. Rosen specifically addresses the ways a redefined Owenism, originally designed to reform ruthless labor practices, ultimately enables Davis to construct a more talented and versatile slave workforce that propels him to enviable economic heights. These transformations of Owen's so-called Utopian scheme further inform the accomplishments of the two most immediate beneficiaries of Davis' refined Owenism: the former Davis Bend slave Benjamin T. Montgomery, who took over the Davis holdings in the aftermath of the Civil War; and his son Isaiah T. Montgomery, who co-founded and ultimately presided over Mound Bayou's earliest years. From New Lanark to Mound Bayou has cross-discipline appeal for those with interests in sociology, history, and economics, as well as American- and African-American studies, Southern studies, communitarian studies, and political theory.

This novel is a work of extraordinary imagination and wide range. Its playful narrative techniques convey a profound message, both personal and political, about humankind's inability to love and yet our compulsion to go on trying.

This case study is part of the Contemporary Cases Online series. The series provides critical case studies that are original, flexible, challenging, controversial and research-informed, driven by the needs of teaching and learning.

The brainchild of bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith, historian Alistair Moffat and artist Andrew Crummy, the Great Tapestry of Scotland is an outstanding celebration of thousands of years of Scottish history and achievement, from the end of the last Ice Age to Dolly the Sheep and Andy Murray's Wimbledon victory in 2013. This book tells the story of this unique undertaking from its original conception and creation by teams of dedicated stitchers to its grand unveiling at the Scottish Parliament in 2013, its subsequent touring and the creation of its permanent home in the Scottish Borders.

A radical thinker and humanitarian employer, Owen made a major contribution to nineteenth-century social movements including co-operatives, trade unions and workers' education. He was a pioneer of enlightened approaches to the education of children and an advocate of birth control.

Spinning New Lives is an historical novel based on the true story of the people and events which created the Eighteenth Century cotton mill village of New Lanark. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Scotland, it is most famous for the works of Robert Owen, the radical social reformer. Meticulously researched, this book tells the dramatic formative years of the community. Share their personal struggles, tragedies and joys as they establish the legacy which we benefit from today. And meet the remarkable man who built the village, David Dale, possibly one of Scotland's greatest unsung heroes.

The hagiography generated by his disciples did neither his name nor reputation much good, since they transformed the 'Social Father' of their movement into the 'Father of Socialism', a sobriquet that ill fits him, yet it sticks to this day. Ian Donnachie's study is the first full biography of Owen for over fifty years."--BOOK JACKET.

The first applied research volume in Scottish Romanticism, this collection foregrounds the concept of progress as 'improvement' as a constitutive theme of Scottish writing during the long eighteenth century. It explores improvement as the animating principle behind Scotland’s post-1707 project of modernization, a narrative both shaped and reflected in the literary sphere. It represents a vital moment in Romantic studies, as a 'four-nations' interrogation of the British context reaches maturity. Equally, the volume contributes to a central concern in the study of Scottish culture, amplifying a critical synthesis of Romanticism and Enlightenment. Chapter 9 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.