History+of+the+Modern+Co-operative+Movement+in+the+19th+Century


 * History of the Modern Co-operative Movement in the 19****th** **Century**


 * In the 1760s, skilled artisans set up co-operative flour mills at Chatham and Woolwich in England to ensure access to adulterated flour at reasonable prices for themselves and their families.

As author Johnston Birchall relates in his book, __Co-op: the people's business__, Robert Owen “had one basic idea, that human character was not formed by the people as they wrestled with 'original sin' but was formed //for// people, out of the environment in which they had to live.” Owen attempted to improve the environment for his workers at New Lanark by providing schools, community rooms, a nursery, and other facilities. Owen had a vision of a society in which working people would live in communities where they would grow their own food, make clothing and other goods that they needed, and in which they would, eventually, govern themselves. Several communities, including New Harmony in Indiana, were founded according to Owen's prescriptions. All of these communities ultimately failed.
 * Robert Owen takes control of the mills at New Lanark, Scotland in 1810.


 * Dr. William King was a follower and supporter of Robert Owen's ideas, but King, unlike Owen, believed that there was value in small, co-operative ventures. King was a pragmatist, and he believed that it would behoove many workers to set up their own co-operative stores to secure basic supplies—food, candles, clothing, and so on—for themselves. King articulated his practical vision in the pages of his publication //The Co-operator//, 1828-1830.[[image:Dr._William_King.jpg align="right"]]


 * Inspired by Robert Owen, William King, and others, many workers set up co-operative stores in the 1830s and 1840s. Most of these ventures failed. The reasons include: not having any legal status, and thus being subject to fraud and other abuses; outright repression by the state and other forces; a lack of commercial experiences on the part of founders, which led to poor bookkeeping and other problems; extending too much credit, leading to cash flow problems; and the central structural flaw of not having mechanisms by which to distribute surpluses and gains to members, thus ensuring member loyalty.


 * In 1844, a co-operative store was established in Rochdale, England by the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers. This group made the following eight principles central to their co-operative: democratic control, open membership, fixed and limited interest on capital, distribution of the surplus as dividends on purchases, cash trading, providing pure and unadulterated goods, a commitment to the education of members and others, and political and religious neutrality. This formulation of the co-operative structure was later adopted by others, and the principles enacted by the Rochdale Pioneers continue to inform how co-operatives are structured into the present.[[image:rtc04.jpg]]


 * The first credit co-operatives are founded in Germany during the 1850s and 1860s. Franz Hermann Schulze-Delitzch created a loan society for artisans in 1850, and Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen founds a loan society for farmers in 1862.


 * Agricultural co-operatives are set up in the United States in the early to middle 1800s, and by the late 1860s there are close to 400 cheese producers and creameries that are run co-operatively. As author Birchall relates, Agricultural co-operatives reach their fullest flowering in Denmark in the late 19th century.


 * Worker co-operatives first develop in France and Italy in the 19th century.


 * Housing co-operatives would not arise until later, but 19th century workers did participate in “terminating building societies.” Workers would pool their money and labor to build houses. Once all the members had secured a house, the society would disband.


 * The International Co-operative Alliance is founded in 1895, with the following aims in mind: providing information on co-operative movements, explaining the principles of co-operation, and creating commercial links between co-operatives in various countries.[[image:Sello-ACI-Gran-Bretaña-1970.jpg width="493" height="259" align="left"]]

Sources: [1] Birchall, Johnston. //The International Co-operative Movement//. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1997. [2] Birchall, Johnston. //Co-op: The People's Business//. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press ;, 1994.