The twenty-eight items in the Warren papers comprise correspondence to and from Warren, chiefly relating to the use of Warren's stereotype invention, the Equity movement, the cooperative society he founded in Modern Times (now Brentwood), New York, his philosophy of land ownership, and his journal, The Periodical Letter. There are also lecture notes, and an article, as well as some printed leaflets. It should be noted that many of the letters are difficult to read, as they are written on both sides of very thin paper.
Josiah Warren was born in Boston in 1798. At age twenty he moved to Cincinnati with his new wife and pursued a career as an orchestra leader and music teacher. His leisure time was devoted to inventing mechanical devices. Warren's interest in social justice led him to become a follower of Robert Owen, founder of an experiment in communal living in New Harmony, Indiana. Warren and his family joined the community until its demise two years later. What he learned from Owen inspired him, and in 1827, Warren opened his Equity store, commonly referred to as the "Time Store," in Cincinnati. The prices of goods in the store were based upon labor hours, and every item was sold not in currency, but in labor notes, exchanged hour for hour.
Around 1830 Robert Own convinced Warren to move to New York where he met Frances Wright, a fellow individualist and free thought reformer. Warren worked with Owen and Wright on The Free Enquirer, but after several months returned to Ohio. He took lessons in various trades and then worked with a group of boys, including his own son, George, to teach them to assume responsibility for their own support. Warren's philosophy on education was to instill a sense of respect in children by respecting children.
In 1835, Warren purchased four hundred acres of land in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, for the village of Equity. Twelve families moved into the new village, and shortly afterward it was discovered the land harbored malaria, and the people fell ill. It was two years before they were able to free themselves from the land and find new homes, sacrificing all their labor and investments. Warren returned to New Harmony in 1837, which, although failing at communism, had grown into a prosperous town under the philosophy of Charles Fourier. Warren stayed a few years, inventing the cylinder-press (although it was not commonly used in the newspaper business until much later).
In 1847 Warren began Utopia, on the banks of the Ohio River, thirty miles from Cincinnati. Although the people of Utopia prospered, land prices around the town soared, and after four years, the villagers moved to Minnesota, where land was plentiful and cheap. Warren then moved to New York and became involved in various reform circles, where he was able to win several people over to his Equity philosophy, including the writers Stephen Pearl Andrews and C.T. Fowler.
Warren began another Equity colony on Long Island, called Modern Times. This experiment proved interesting in that it brought unwanted publicity and drew many colorful characters. The original colonists were strongly committed to respecting the rights of others, so no one was turned away, regardless of their beliefs or actions. The colony became quite notorious, so the villagers changed the name to Brentwood, and let outsiders believe the experiment had ended.
Warren spent his last few years in Boston, playing music, writing, and spending time with friends. He died in 1874, at the age of 76, and was laid to rest at Mount Auburn Cemetery. At his request, no headstone marks his grave.
Source: Bailie, William. Josiah Warren: The First American Anarchist. Boston: Small, Maynard & Company, 1906.