'First movers in every useful undertaking': Formal voluntary associations in Philadelphia, 1725--1775.

摘要

"First Movers in Every Useful Undertaking: Formal Voluntary Associations in Philadelphia, 1725--1775," analyzes in detail the role of voluntary associations in the social, civic, and economic operations and constructions of urban life and governance in Philadelphia. Philadelphians founded over sixty organizations in the colonial period, including libraries, fire companies, a hospital, the first non-sectarian college, scientific societies, and a host of sociable and ethnic clubs. This dissertation draws on organizational Minutes and papers, newspapers and pamphlets, private correspondence and journals to examine the context and impact of these diverse groups.;Clubs and associations played a crucial role in the development of Philadelphia's civil society. When government abdicated responsibility for such crucial tasks as fire protection or defense of the city in wartime, Philadelphians formed their own organizations. The breadth and activity of civic voluntary associations forces a reconsideration of political process and participation in the colonial period beyond electoral politics. Philadelphians assumed to themselves control and responsibility for a myriad of civic activities, expanding their participation in and direction of community affairs. In this way voluntary associations expanded political process, but simultaneously closed it down as private organizations did not answer to any constituency but their own members. Philadelphians who disagreed with their activities had no way of stopping them.;Associations performed vital work in the local economy, distributing charity, patronizing taverns, purchasing goods and services, and particularly by acting as major lenders of capital. Altogether Philadelphia organizations infused over £43,000 into the economy in the 25 years before the Revolution through loans that ranged from no more than a few pounds to thousands. This avenue of capital was crucial to the men who borrowed it and reveal an unstudied aspect of associational life and credit markets in urban North American seaports.;Voluntary organizations also helped to structure Philadelphia's social life. Their membership lists provide insights into the social clusters and networks that operated in the city. Some groups acted to bridge among disparate communities; others reflected and reinforced boundaries of class, religion, ethnicity, and occupation.