Why did the collaboration in Totley between Ruskin and the original group of Sheffield Communists end in failure? In the sixth post of his new blog series, Stuart Eagles also follows the lives of some of the secularist radicals after their dreams of establishing a...

In the fifth part of this new blog series, Stuart Eagles outlines the history of the Totley experiment during its first phase which involved the original group of Sheffield communists drawn from the Hall of Science. He seeks out evidence of who did what on the 13...

In the fourth part of his new blog series, Stuart Eagles looks at what the communists planned to do and what financial arrangements were reachd with Ruskin. He also introduces two new figures involved in the project. But first, he sets the scene by sharing an...

In this blog post, the third of a new series, Stuart Eagles sifts the evidence and reveals the identities and backgrounds of the Sheffield communists who met Ruskin in Walkley and went on to collaborate with him in establishing a working community on 13 acres of...

In this blog post, the second of a new series, Stuart Eagles looks into what the Sheffield communists believed in. He scrutinises unfamiliar sources to find out more about what happened when Ruskin & the Communists met in Walkley on 27 April 1876 … RUSKIN &...

It is 150 years since an extraordinary and consequential meeting took place between John Ruskin and a group of politically radical workers in Sheffield. It resulted in the most quixotic of Ruskin’s experiments, and led to one of the most awkward collaborations he ever...

“Is this a holiday?” Flavius asks sarcastically in the opening lines of Julius Caesar. Thanks to Ruskin, the boys at Manchester Grammar School were unexpectedly granted half a day’s holiday in December 1864, a fact apparently long since forgotten. By careful...

Celebrating Paul Dawson The strength of any Friends organisation relies heavily on the hard work and dedication of its volunteer committee. The modern-day Friends of Ruskin’s Brantwood was founded 35 years ago. It produced its first newsletter within about six months...

In this third and final blog about Ruskin curator, William White, we consider his troubled relationship with Sheffield—its people, places, and most of all, the city council. Never content with the practical reality of living at Meersbrook Hall, he found himself at...

Last time, we looked at William White’s family background and early career. Now our focus turns on his period as curator of the Ruskin Museum. It’s time to re-examine White’s achievements and limitations and to reassess his contribution both to Ruskin’s legacy and...