Thomas Stedman Whitwell
Encyclopedia
Thomas Stedman Whitwell was an English architect, best known for his collaboration with Robert Owen
in an unrealised design for a secular communal utopia at New Harmony, Indiana, USA.
, England
. He moved to London in his early twenties, evidenced in records of having exhibited at the Royal Academy
. In 1811, he was employed at the Architects’ Office at the London Docks.
, few of which survive to this day. His last completed commission in England was for the Brunswick Theatre in London’s Whitechapel
district. Mortalities were suffered after the roof trusses, overloaded with theatre equipment, collapsed days after its opening.
, Whitwell became involved in the design for a utopian community at a site then named Harmonie (or New Harmony, Indiana
) in Indiana
, United States
, collaborating with early social reformer and cotton mill owner Robert Owen
.
Owen had previously provided workers at his cotton mills with a pioneering model Company Town
at New Lanark, Scotland intended to raise the standard of living and education of his employees. Inspired by stories of the utopian self-sufficient communities, such as the Shakers
, springing up in the United States, Owen proposed to create a town unconstrained by the economic conditions and religious influences in the United Kingdom.
Owen purchased the land and town of Harmonie in Indiana from George Rapp
and the Rappites, a separatist religious community. The Rappites had built a substantial and successful town on the site but sold it to Owen so they could relocate to an area with more opportunities for trade.
Owen had intentions to redesign the town as a self-sufficient secular community complete with factories, pleasure gardens, a gymnasium and educational facilities. Whitwell devised an ordered quadrangle layout for the proposed town, ‘thirty-three acres; that of the enclosed quadrangle twenty-two acres, nearly three times as large as Russell Square, London
.’ Communal residences were located on the periphery, acting as a boundary wall, and all facilities were to be placed symmetrically within. Whitwell wrote of careful consideration of the positioning of the building massing to provide ample light and air to all residents. The engraving of Whitwell’s famous perspective of the proposed town was entitled ‘DESIGN for a Community of 2000 persons founded upon a Principle Commended by Plato
, Lord Bacon and Sir Thomas More.’
The direct influence of Sir Thomas More’s book Utopia
(published in 1516) upon Whitwell’s design was obvious. The set-out of long communal dwellings of the New Harmony design complement More’s portrayal of the fictional capital of Utopia, Aircastle. There, houses built as long terraces contained back doors opening onto shared gardens, features employed in New Harmony. The description of the citizens of Utopia includes that they only needed to work six hours a day thanks to the efficiency and shared property within the towns. This seems to have made its mark in Whitwell’s supremely orderly design.
While New Harmony was intended to be a secular community, the influence of Rapp’s religious doctrine appears to have been an influence on Whitwell’s design. Rapp’s emphasis on the spiritual experience of nature had led to a labyrinth with a temple in the middle included within Harmonie, and other Rappite towns such as Economy, Pennsylvania. All included this vital feature. Whitwell’s design for New Harmony also features multiple paths along which to meander, however the temple was replaced with a secularised ‘Conservatory, of about one hundred feet in diameter, for the reception and cultivation of exotics.’
Whitwell spent some time in New Harmony around 1825-26. However, he returned to England, disillusioned, when the construction of the new town proved financially unviable.
and longitude
degrees, allowing travellers to immediately understand their location according to place names.
Upon his return to England Whitwell spent the last part of his life composing theoretical works. One entitled On warming and ventilating houses and buildings by means of large volumes of attempered air, was published in 1834. Another intriguingly titled manuscript, Architectural Absurdities, is now lost.
’s Garden City
values and carried out in countless permutations worldwide. One example is Milleara Estate in Avondale Heights, Victoria, Australia, designed by Walter Burley Griffin
.
Much of the influence of Whitwell’s New Harmony design can be credited to Owen, who toured both the United States and the United Kingdom promoting the plan, even persuading American President
John Quincy Adams
to keep a model of it in his office for a period of time. Owen continued to exhibit and publish it after Whitwell’s death in a brochure named ‘Plan for a Model Community’, a publication still widely available. Its success beyond New Harmony into an illustration for early 19th century experiments in communal utopian living has likely rested in the design’s stand-alone and symbolic appeal.
Robert Owen
Robert Owen was a Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement.Owen's philosophy was based on three intellectual pillars:...
in an unrealised design for a secular communal utopia at New Harmony, Indiana, USA.
Early life
Thomas Stedman Whitwell was born in 1784 in CoventryCoventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He moved to London in his early twenties, evidenced in records of having exhibited at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
. In 1811, he was employed at the Architects’ Office at the London Docks.
Architectural Work in Coventry and Birmingham (1813-1825)
After gaining some experience at the London Docks, Whitwell returned to Coventry where he designed a modest number of built works both there and in BirminghamBirmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, few of which survive to this day. His last completed commission in England was for the Brunswick Theatre in London’s Whitechapel
Whitechapel
Whitechapel is a built-up inner city district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, London, England. It is located east of Charing Cross and roughly bounded by the Bishopsgate thoroughfare on the west, Fashion Street on the north, Brady Street and Cavell Street on the east and The Highway on the...
district. Mortalities were suffered after the roof trusses, overloaded with theatre equipment, collapsed days after its opening.
Involvement in New Harmony, Indiana USA
Perhaps due to interest in his exhibition of an unbuilt plan for an ideal community named ‘Southville’ at Leamington SpaLeamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or Leamington or Leam to locals, is a spa town in central Warwickshire, England. Formerly known as Leamington Priors, its expansion began following the popularisation of the medicinal qualities of its water by Dr Kerr in 1784, and by Dr Lambe...
, Whitwell became involved in the design for a utopian community at a site then named Harmonie (or New Harmony, Indiana
Harmony
In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
) in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, collaborating with early social reformer and cotton mill owner Robert Owen
Robert Owen
Robert Owen was a Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement.Owen's philosophy was based on three intellectual pillars:...
.
Owen had previously provided workers at his cotton mills with a pioneering model Company Town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
at New Lanark, Scotland intended to raise the standard of living and education of his employees. Inspired by stories of the utopian self-sufficient communities, such as the Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...
, springing up in the United States, Owen proposed to create a town unconstrained by the economic conditions and religious influences in the United Kingdom.
Owen purchased the land and town of Harmonie in Indiana from George Rapp
George Rapp
Johann Georg Rapp was the founder of the religious sect called Harmonists, Harmonites, Rappites, or the Harmony Society....
and the Rappites, a separatist religious community. The Rappites had built a substantial and successful town on the site but sold it to Owen so they could relocate to an area with more opportunities for trade.
Owen had intentions to redesign the town as a self-sufficient secular community complete with factories, pleasure gardens, a gymnasium and educational facilities. Whitwell devised an ordered quadrangle layout for the proposed town, ‘thirty-three acres; that of the enclosed quadrangle twenty-two acres, nearly three times as large as Russell Square, London
Russell Square
Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. To the north is Woburn Place and to the south-east is Southampton Row...
.’ Communal residences were located on the periphery, acting as a boundary wall, and all facilities were to be placed symmetrically within. Whitwell wrote of careful consideration of the positioning of the building massing to provide ample light and air to all residents. The engraving of Whitwell’s famous perspective of the proposed town was entitled ‘DESIGN for a Community of 2000 persons founded upon a Principle Commended by Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
, Lord Bacon and Sir Thomas More.’
The direct influence of Sir Thomas More’s book Utopia
Utopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
(published in 1516) upon Whitwell’s design was obvious. The set-out of long communal dwellings of the New Harmony design complement More’s portrayal of the fictional capital of Utopia, Aircastle. There, houses built as long terraces contained back doors opening onto shared gardens, features employed in New Harmony. The description of the citizens of Utopia includes that they only needed to work six hours a day thanks to the efficiency and shared property within the towns. This seems to have made its mark in Whitwell’s supremely orderly design.
While New Harmony was intended to be a secular community, the influence of Rapp’s religious doctrine appears to have been an influence on Whitwell’s design. Rapp’s emphasis on the spiritual experience of nature had led to a labyrinth with a temple in the middle included within Harmonie, and other Rappite towns such as Economy, Pennsylvania. All included this vital feature. Whitwell’s design for New Harmony also features multiple paths along which to meander, however the temple was replaced with a secularised ‘Conservatory, of about one hundred feet in diameter, for the reception and cultivation of exotics.’
Whitwell spent some time in New Harmony around 1825-26. However, he returned to England, disillusioned, when the construction of the new town proved financially unviable.
Later life
Whitwell’s short stay at New Harmony allowed him to publish in the New Harmony Gazette a proposal for a new system of town naming according to latitudeLatitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
and longitude
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
degrees, allowing travellers to immediately understand their location according to place names.
Upon his return to England Whitwell spent the last part of his life composing theoretical works. One entitled On warming and ventilating houses and buildings by means of large volumes of attempered air, was published in 1834. Another intriguingly titled manuscript, Architectural Absurdities, is now lost.
Legacy
While Whitwell’s reputation as an architect has not withstood the test of time, and his texts have either been lost or uninfluential, his design for New Harmony has constantly been revisited as one of the culminations of early 19th Century Utopian experimentation in the United States. The proliferation of new communities with emphasis on either religious or secular collective living reached its high point as Whitwell was producing his design for New Harmony. However, none displayed such a graphic interpretation of their own philosophies as Whitwell’s famous perspective. One of the key features of Whitwell’s design, the botanic garden in the centre with equal views and access from every dwelling, has been echoed in Ebenezer HowardEbenezer Howard
Sir Ebenezer Howard is known for his publication Garden Cities of To-morrow , the description of a utopian city in which people live harmoniously together with nature. The publication resulted in the founding of the garden city movement, that realized several Garden Cities in Great Britain at the...
’s Garden City
Garden City
- Places :Australia:*Toowoomba, Queensland, nicknamed "Garden City"*Garden City, a locality within Port Melbourne, Victoria* Westfield Garden City, a Westfield shopping centre in Upper Mount Gravatt, Brisbane...
values and carried out in countless permutations worldwide. One example is Milleara Estate in Avondale Heights, Victoria, Australia, designed by Walter Burley Griffin
Walter Burley Griffin
Walter Burley Griffin was an American architect and landscape architect, who is best known for his role in designing Canberra, Australia's capital city...
.
Much of the influence of Whitwell’s New Harmony design can be credited to Owen, who toured both the United States and the United Kingdom promoting the plan, even persuading American President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
to keep a model of it in his office for a period of time. Owen continued to exhibit and publish it after Whitwell’s death in a brochure named ‘Plan for a Model Community’, a publication still widely available. Its success beyond New Harmony into an illustration for early 19th century experiments in communal utopian living has likely rested in the design’s stand-alone and symbolic appeal.