Embedded Files
101 The banner was hand painted in Birmingham by Woodcraft Members in the 1930s (alongside George Holyoake) and has been a part of the Birmingham and Midlands Institute Collection for many years.
Robert Owen believed that character is formed by environment and that communal living and shared labour led to a better society, values shared and adopted by Woodcraft Folk.
More about Robert Owen
More about Robert Owen
Robert Owen (1771-1858, Newtown) was a Welsh manufacturer turned reformer, one of the most influential early 19th-century advocates of 'Utopian Socialism'.
He revolutionized worker conditions at New Lanark by implementing shorter hours, education, and social care, arguing that improved environments built better character. His ideas focusing on mutual cooperation over competition, heavily influenced 19th-century cooperative and labour movements.
How it became one of our 100 Objects
How it became one of our 100 Objects
The banner was loaned from John Boyle, Senate of the Cooperative and Principle Six Officer. He met Woodcraft members at Tolpuddle 2025 with the banner. A chance conversation recognising the Woodcraft logo identified the banner as having come from Birmingham.
References
References
Where can I find it?
Where can I find it?
At the end of the exhibition this item will be returned to the Birmingham and Midlands Institute.
The village of New Lanark with its associated mill buildings and the river in the foreground, now a UNESCO world heritage site
Robert Owen banner in our exhibition
Robert Owen Robert Owen, detail of a watercolour by Auguste Hervieu, 1829; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
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