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About
Junto Society
9/26/2002
In
1727, Benjamin Franklin convinced 12 of his friends to
form a club dedicated to mutual improvement. Meeting one
night a week, these young men discussed the topics of the
day. The group lasted for 40 years and eventually became
the nucleus of the American Philosophical Society.
Junto,
pronounced who-n-toe, was a private forum for discussion
and as a surreptitious instrument for leading public
opinion. One of the functions of the group was to
brainstorm publicly beneficial ideas.
Franklin
described the Junto this way in his Autobiography
I
should have mentioned before, that, in the autumn of the
preceding year, [1727] I had formed most of my ingenious
acquaintance into a club of mutual improvement, which we
called the JUNTO; we met on Friday evenings. The rules
that I drew up required that every member, in his turn,
should produce one or more queries on any point of
Morals, Politics, or Natural Philosophy [physics], to be
discuss'd by the company; and once in three months
produce and read an essay of his own writing, on any
subject he pleased. Our debates were to be under the
direction of a president, and to be conducted in the
sincere spirit of inquiry after truth, without fondness
for dispute or desire of victory; and to prevent warmth,
all expressions of positive opinions, or direct
contradiction, were after some time made contraband, and
prohibited under small pecuniary penalties.
The
results of the original Junto are still evident today as
an integral part of American society. The Junto gave us
our first library, volunteer fire departments, the first
public hospital, police departments, paved streets and the
University of Pennsylvania. They recommended books,
shopkeepers, and friends to each other. They fostered
self-improvement through discussions on topics related to
philosophy, morals, economics, and politics.
It
is these accomplishments and ideals that inspired this web
page. The managers of Junto Society are from across the
nation. Ordinary citizens who came together through
various internet political discussion groups, for the
purpose of the betterment of American society and
politics. We seek to accomplish this by providing our
visitors with easy access to information on current events
and historical works which have shaped our nation.
Junto
Society Staff
Junto
Society Adult
Junto
Society Teens
Junto Society
Youth
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Junto
Society Board Members Biographies
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Sandra
Hartle
Monty
Rainey
Please
read our Privacy
Policy
Junto
Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit Public Education
organization. We depend entirely on the financial support
of individuals, corporations and foundations that believe
in private sector solutions to Education problems. |