History of cooperatives in the United States
Encyclopedia
The history of cooperative
s in the United States
extends to pre-independence times. With the exception of credit unions and mutual banking institutions, most cooperatives have held a comparatively light footprint on the economic history of the United States in comparison to the economies of Europe
.
established in the British North American colonies was created in 1735 in Charleston, South Carolina, but was liquidated following a 1740 fire which gutted much of the city's buildings and had left the company unable to recoup the losses. The Philadelphia Contributionship
mutual insurance
company, founded by Benjamin Franklin
in 1752, is the oldest continuing mutual insurance company in the continental United States.
.
's EPIC movement
became one of the leading proponents for the establishment of self-help cooperatives in California
during the Great Depression
, as was Japanese pacifist Toyohiko Kagawa
, who advocated for "brotherhood economics" as an alternative to communism
and fascism
on both sides of the Pacific. This advocacy for cooperatives, combined with then-president Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, culminated in the establishment of cooperatives in Berkeley, Palo Alto, Eau Claire, Wisconsin
, Hanover, New Hampshire
, Hyde Park, Chicago
, and Greenbelt, Maryland
. While all these cooperatives lasted to at least their 50th anniversaries, the Berkeley cooperative ultimately closed down, the Eau Claire and Palo Alto cooperatives scaled back their activities, and the Hanover, Hyde Park, and Greenbelt cooperatives have survived to this day.
Credit union
s, in particular, were established throughout the United States and have remained one of the most visible and productive legacies of the New Deal period.
s were, at one point, proposed as an alternative to the public option
.
In 2009, the United Steelworkers
signed an agreement with the Basque Country
-based Mondragon Corporation in order to further the establishment and expansion of unionized worker cooperative
s in North America.
The National Cooperative Business Association identifies over 29,000 cooperative businesses employing more than 2 million people and accounting for over $650 billion in annual revenue.
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
extends to pre-independence times. With the exception of credit unions and mutual banking institutions, most cooperatives have held a comparatively light footprint on the economic history of the United States in comparison to the economies of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Colonial era
The earliest mutual organizationMutual organization
A mutual, mutual organization, or mutual society is an organization based on the principle of mutuality. Unlike a true cooperative, members usually do not contribute to the capital of the company by direct investment, but derive their right to profits and votes through their customer relationship...
established in the British North American colonies was created in 1735 in Charleston, South Carolina, but was liquidated following a 1740 fire which gutted much of the city's buildings and had left the company unable to recoup the losses. The Philadelphia Contributionship
Philadelphia Contributionship
The Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses from Loss by Fire is the oldest property insurance company in the United States. It was organized by Benjamin Franklin in 1752, and incorporated in 1768....
mutual insurance
Mutual insurance
A mutual insurance company is an insurance company which has no shareholders but instead is owned entirely by its policyholders. The primary form of financial business set up as a mutual company in the United States has been mutual insurance. Under this idea, what would have been profits are...
company, founded by Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
in 1752, is the oldest continuing mutual insurance company in the continental United States.
19th century
The Boston Mechanics' and Laborers' Mutual Benefit Association was founded in 1845 as a mutual organization styled after the British Rochdale PioneersRochdale Pioneers
The Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers, founded in 1844, was an early consumer co-operative, and the first to pay a patronage dividend, forming the basis for the modern co-operative movement....
.
20th century
By 1920, there were 2,600 consumer co-ops in the United states - all but 11 were general stores - and 80% were in towns with populations of less than 2,500. Combined sales volume for these stores was about $260 million USD.Great Depression
Upton SinclairUpton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. , was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle . It exposed conditions in the U.S...
's EPIC movement
End Poverty in California movement
Standing for End Poverty in California, EPIC was an effort for well-known muckraking writer and former Socialist Upton Sinclair to implement socialist reforms through California's Democratic Party during the Great Depression by recruiting supporters into the party and then securing that party's...
became one of the leading proponents for the establishment of self-help cooperatives in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, as was Japanese pacifist Toyohiko Kagawa
Toyohiko Kagawa
thumb|right|200px|At Princeton Theological Seminarythumb|right|200px|Great Kantō earthquake, 1923thumb|right|200px|In America, 1935 was a Japanese Christian pacifist, Christian reformer, and labour activist. Kagawa wrote, spoke, and worked at length on ways to employ Christian principles in the...
, who advocated for "brotherhood economics" as an alternative to communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
on both sides of the Pacific. This advocacy for cooperatives, combined with then-president Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, culminated in the establishment of cooperatives in Berkeley, Palo Alto, Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire is a city located in the west-central part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 65,883 as of the 2010 census, making it the largest municipality in the northwestern portion of the state, and the 9th largest in the state overall. It is the county seat of Eau Claire County,...
, Hanover, New Hampshire
Hanover, New Hampshire
Hanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2010 census. CNN and Money magazine rated Hanover the sixth best place to live in America in 2011, and the second best in 2007....
, Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
, and Greenbelt, Maryland
Greenbelt, Maryland
Greenbelt is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Contained within today's City of Greenbelt is the historic planned community now known locally as "Old Greenbelt" and designated as the Greenbelt Historic District...
. While all these cooperatives lasted to at least their 50th anniversaries, the Berkeley cooperative ultimately closed down, the Eau Claire and Palo Alto cooperatives scaled back their activities, and the Hanover, Hyde Park, and Greenbelt cooperatives have survived to this day.
Credit union
Credit union
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members...
s, in particular, were established throughout the United States and have remained one of the most visible and productive legacies of the New Deal period.
21st century
In the healthcare reform debate, health insurance cooperativeHealth insurance cooperative
A health insurance cooperative is a cooperative entity that has the goal of providing health insurance and is also owned by the people that the organization insures...
s were, at one point, proposed as an alternative to the public option
Public health insurance option
The public health insurance option is a proposed government-run health insurance agency which competes with other health insurance companies. It is not the same as Publicly-funded health care. Called the public insurance option or public option, for short, it was a proposed health insurance plan...
.
In 2009, the United Steelworkers
United Steelworkers
The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union is the largest industrial labor union in North America, with 705,000 members. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, U.S., the United Steelworkers represents workers in the United...
signed an agreement with the Basque Country
Basque Country (autonomous community)
The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
-based Mondragon Corporation in order to further the establishment and expansion of unionized worker cooperative
Worker cooperative
A worker cooperative is a cooperative owned and democratically managed by its worker-owners. This control may be exercised in a number of ways. A cooperative enterprise may mean a firm where every worker-owner participates in decision making in a democratic fashion, or it may refer to one in which...
s in North America.
The National Cooperative Business Association identifies over 29,000 cooperative businesses employing more than 2 million people and accounting for over $650 billion in annual revenue.