ABSTRACT
Since 1735 there has been a continuous and unbroken existence of communes in the United States. There is no equivalent in any of the other countries in the modern world. A history of the communes would not be complete unless this phenomena were thoroughly examined. The task is not an easy one, mainly because American historians have, on the whole, ignored them. It seems that it would be impossible to give a monistic explanation to the continuity of the communal phenomenon. But there are elements in American history which might explain the background in which communes took root. The following is an attempt to throw light on the phenomenon by means of two sets of causes: (1) background factors of a lasting effect which, during the formative years of the communes and of the American society as a whole, enabled them to take root; (2) changing historical factors which throughout history aided and abetted the growing process of the communes after they had taken root on American soil.
