Synopses & Reviews
In 1869 six London families arrived in Nemaha County, Kansas, as the first colonists of the Workingmenand#8217;s Cooperative Colony, later fancifully renamed Llewellyn Castle by a local writer. These early colonists were all members of Britainand#8217;s National Reform League, founded by noted Chartist leader James Bronterre Oand#8217;Brien. As working-class radicals they were determined to find an alternative to the grinding poverty that exploitative liberal capitalism had inflicted on Englandand#8217;s laboring poor. Located on 680 acres in northeastern Kansas, this collectivist colony jointly owned all the land and itsand#160;natural resources, with individuals leasing small sections to work. The money from these leases was intended for public works and the healthcare and education of colony members.
The colony floundered after just a few years and collapsed in 1874, but its mission and founding ideas lived on in Kansas. Many former colonists became prominent political activists in the 1890s, and the colonyand#8217;s ideals of national fiscal policy reform and state ownership of land were carried over into the Kansas Populist movement.
Based on archival research throughout the United States and the United Kingdom, this history of an English collectivist colony in Americaand#8217;s Great Plains highlights the connections between British and American reform movements and their contexts.
Review
"Llewellyn Castle is an accomplishment that contributes much to our understanding of a social reform movement that stretched from London to Kansas, while reminding us that even lost and forgotten "footnotes" can inform us about larger historical trends."and#8212;Charles Delgadillo, Kansas History
Review
andquot;Llewellyn Castle revives the history of a community and group. . . . It will be a welcome addition to the bookshelves of scholars in a variety of fields.andquot;andmdash;Michelle D. Tiedje, Nebraska History
Review
andquot;Llewellyn Castle is a surprisingly epic history of the cooperative political and economic world view that spanned the nineteenth century and formed the bedrock of the Anglo-American radical tradition.andquot;andmdash;Adam-Max Tuchinsky, Journal of American History
Review
and#8220;
Llewellyn Castle will be quite important to specialists in regional history, British history, and communal studies. . . . [This is] scholarship at its finest.and#8221;and#8212;Timothy Miller, author of
The Quest for Utopia in Twentieth-Century America, 1900and#8211;1960 and#160;
Review
andldquo;Gary Entzandrsquo;s discussion of the Populistsandrsquo; subtreasury plan . . . represents an original and path-breaking analysis and [is] a real contribution to the historiography of American populism.andrdquo;andmdash;Jim Bisset, author of
Agrarian Socialism in America and#160;
and#160;
Synopsis
A compilation of personal photographs, historical images, and written excerpts illuminating Ernest Hemingway's significant ties to northern Michigan.
Synopsis
In the early 1900s, the Little Traverse Bay area in northern Michigan was transitioning from a sparsely populated lumber region to a hotspot for tourists. Looking to enhance dwindling freight business, the region's railroad and steamship companies mounted elaborate and effective marketing campaigns to lure tourists from as far away as St. Louis, Kansas City, and Louisville to experience the area's pristine natural beauty and abundant leisure activities. Ernest Hemingway's family was among those who vacationed "up north" in this era; his parents built a cottage on Walloon Lake near Petoskey to summer away from their home near Chicago.
In Picturing Hemingway's Michigan, author Michael R. Federspiel introduces readers to the Hemingway family, who were typical of many that vacationed in the area. He also paints a picture of life in northern Michigan between 1900 and 1920 and traces the many connections between the area and Hemingway's body of work. In chapters that incorporate candid family photographs from the Hemingways' own collection, historical images of the region, and archival excerpts from Hemingway's letters, journals, and stories, Federspiel shows that the region left an indelible mark on the young writer. To reveal the connections between northern Michigan and Hemingway's fiction, Federspiel examines not only Hemingway's famous Nick Adams stories, which were set in the area, but also later works like A Moveable Feast.
With more than 250 images, Picturing Hemingway's Michigan leads readers on a tour of the people, places, and activities that deeply influenced one of America's most famous authors during his twenty-two summers in northern Michigan. Anyone interested in Michigan history, the life of Ernest Hemingway, or the culture of the early twentieth century will enjoy this beautiful volume.
Synopsis
A compilation of personal photographs, historical images, and written excerpts illuminating Ernest Hemingway's significant ties to northern Michigan.
In the early 1900s, the Little Traverse Bay area in northern Michigan was transitioning from a sparsely populated lumber region to a hotspot for tourists. Looking to enhance dwindling freight business, the region's railroad and steamship companies mounted elaborate and effective marketing campaigns to lure tourists from as far away as St. Louis, Kansas City, and Louisville to experience the area's pristine natural beauty and abundant leisure activities. Ernest Hemingway's family was among those who vacationed "up north" in this era; his parents built a cottage on Walloon Lake near Petoskey to summer away from their home near Chicago.
In Picturing Hemingway's Michigan, author Michael R. Federspiel introduces readers to the Hemingway family, who were typical of many that vacationed in the area. He also paints a picture of life in northern Michigan between 1900 and 1920 and traces the many connections between the area and Hemingway's body of work. In chapters that incorporate candid family photographs from the Hemingways' own collection, historical images of the region, and archival excerpts from Hemingway's letters, journals, and stories, Federspiel shows that the region left an indelible mark on the young writer. To reveal the connections between northern Michigan and Hemingway's fiction, Federspiel examines not only Hemingway's famous Nick Adams stories, which were set in the area, but also later works like A Moveable Feast.
With more than 250 images, Picturing Hemingway's Michigan leads readers on a tour of the people, places, and activities that deeply influenced one of America's most famous authors during his twenty-two summers in northern Michigan. Anyone interested in Michigan history, the life of Ernest Hemingway, or the culture of the early twentieth century will enjoy this beautiful volume.
About the Author
Gary R. Entz is a historian who previously taught at McPherson College in Kansas. He currently teaches at Nicolet College in Wisconsin. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Mormon History and Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Great Plains and in edited volumes.