by Carol Anderson
A Commune In LaGrange County
In the book 1882 History,
LaGrange County, Indiana
(which was published in that
year), I came across an interesting mention of a communelike society that existed in the
early 1800s in the county.
The book mentions a man
named Charles Fourier who
was at the forefront of this
movement. I did some research into Fourier and found
so much information that I
will divide this month’s topic
into two issues.
This issue will describe
the man Charles Fourier and
the beliefs that led to the
LaGrange County Phalanx,
and next month’s Hometown
History will be devoted to the
LaGrange County Phalanx.
Charles Fourier (17721837) was a French philosopher who was thought to be
a little radical during his
lifetime, but many of his views
are considered mainstream
now. He became independently wealthy after the death
of his father and spent a lot of
time traveling through Europe
and developing his ideas of a
perfect world.
Fourier believed that
concern and cooperation were
the secrets of social success
and that if people cooperated,
society would see immense
improvement in productivity
levels. He also believed that
workers should be compensated for their activity levels.
Fourier saw this cooperation occurring in communities called “phalanxes”
based around structures
he called “grand hotels” or
pg 8 · The Hometown Treasure · Oct. ‘11
Phalansteres. These buildings
were four level apartment
com plexes where the richest
lived in the top apartments
and the poorest lived on the
ground floor. Wealth was
determined by a person’s job
which was assigned based on
the interests and desires of
the individual. There were
also incentives for people who
worked less desirable jobs;
they received more money.
He believed there were 12
common passions which resulted in 810 types of character so the ideal phalanx would
have 1620 people. One day
Fourier believed there would
be six million phalanxes
ruled by a World Congress of
Phalanxes.
Fourier thought poverty
and not inequality was the
“source of all evil” and he proposed to eradicate it by paying
higher wages and a “decent
minimum” for those not able
to work. He was a big supporter of women’s rights and
is thought to have coined the
word feminism.
Fourier believed that all
important jobs should be open
to women based on skill and
aptitude. It was Fourier’s mission to liberate every individual through education and the
liberation of human passion.
Although he was from
France, he attained followers
in the United States where
several Fourier communes
were established not only in
LaGrange County, but also
near Dallas, New Jersey, New
York, and Ohio.
Clueless
Crossword
Hometown History
Solution to Clueless Crossword
is on page 42
By Melissa
Byler
Use the
words
below to
fill in the
spaces!
Tired
Texting
Tyrant
Teaching
Paper
Creative
Energy
Coffee
Tough
Payment
Seniority
Artist
Actress
Bored
Confused
Investment Strategies.
One-On-ONe Advice
STEVEN M. WEIGEL
Financial Advisor
206 S. Detroit St. * LaGrange, IN 46761
260-463-8473
MATT RANG
Financial Advisor
117 N Main * Wolcottville, IN
260-854-3116
DAVID SANDS
Financial Advisor
902 Lincolnway South * Ligonier, IN 46767
260-894-9912
SHELDON Q. SHROCK
Financial Advisor
160 N Morton St., Shipshewana, IN 46565
260-768-4348
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