The Rochdale Pioneers Museum - the birthplace of the Co-op

The idea of co-operative societies grew out of the Industrial Revolution, as ordinary working people found their livelihoods threatened by mechanisation, as well as enclosure and the disappearance of smallholdings - cut off from the food supply and at the mercy of market forces.

The answer was to pool resources and purchase food and other items in bulk.

Though there had been earlier co-operative groups in Britain, the Rochdale group in Greater Manchester became the prototype for other societies, as they were responsible for a set of principles for co-operation called the Rochdale Principles.

The Rochdale Principles—voluntary and open membership; democratic member control; member economic participation; autonomy and independence; education, training, and information; cooperation among cooperatives; and concern for the community—are still used by co-operatives around the world today.

While the society moved out to purpose-built premises in 1867, in 1925 the Co-Operative Union purchased the building with the plan to create a museum in the birthplace of co-operation. The museum eventually opened in 1931. The building is so important to the movement that a replica was built in the Co-operative College in Kobe, Japan.

The front of the museum is a recreation of the original shop, including furniture, weighing scales, and items that were for sale. The rest of the floor is dedicated to the history of the movement, with a temporary exhibition space located upstairs.

The Co-op supermarket has its origins in the Rochdale Pioneers.

Further reading

• Co-operative Heritage Trust