The Pilgrims Tried Socialism First | Lawrence W. Reed

Economist and historian Lawrence W. (“Larry”) Reed, President Emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education, discusses the story behind his book Born of Ideas: How Principles, Faith, and Courage Forged America. He describes the how the Pilgrims fled religious persecution in England, spent a decade in Holland, then sailed with investors who placed roughly as many “strangers” on the Mayflower as Pilgrims. Those investors also required that the colony put its produce into a common storehouse and share it equally.

Reed uses Governor William Bradford’s account of the early years at Plymouth to show how the Pilgrims first tried socialism, causing production to fall when it needed to rise. Eventually, Bradford parceled out the land and established private property, and the colony began to flourish.