New Lanark

The New Lanark mills were founded in 1784 next to the town of Lanark, and purchased in the early 19th century by a partnership that included Robert Owen.

Related Topics:
1784 - Lanark - Robert Owen

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Owen was an industrialist who became an influential social reformer. New Lanark, with its social and welfare programmes, epitomised his utopian socialism.

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Some 2,500 people lived at New Lanark, many from the poorhouses of Glasgow and Edinburgh. Although not the grimmest of mills by far, Owen found the conditions unsatisfactory and resolved to improve the workers' lot. He paid particular attention to the needs of the 500 or so children living and working at the mills, and opened the first infants' school in Britain in 1816.

Related Topics:
Glasgow - Edinburgh

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The mills thrived commercially, but Owen's partners were unhappy at the extra expense incurred by his welfare programmes. Unwilling to allow the mills to revert back to the old ways of operating, Owen bought out his partners.

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New Lanark became celebrated throughout Europe, with many leading royals, statesmen and reformers visiting the mills. They were astonished to find a clean, healthy industrial environment with a content, vibrant workforce and a prosperous, viable business venture all rolled into one.

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As well as the mills' connections with reform, socialism and welfare, they are also representative of the Industrial Revolution that occurred in Britain in the 18th and 19th centuries and which fundamentally altered the shape of the world.

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The Falls of Clyde, painted by J.M.W. Turner (below) and many other artists, are a short walk upstream.

Related Topics:
Falls of Clyde - J.M.W. Turner

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