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Howard emigrated to the [[United States]] in 1871, living in [[Nebraska]] and [[Chicago]], but returned to London in 1876, working as a clerk and sometime Parliamentary reporter. He became a supporter of [[Henry George]], whose single tax proposals were to influence Howard's work. In 1898 Howard published ''To-Morrow: A Peaceful Path to Real Reform'', republished under its more familiar title ''Garden Cities of To-Morrow'' in 1902. In it, he argued that the problems of ever-expanding cities, and the poor social conditions within them, could be solved by instead building self-contained networks of 'Garden Cities' which would be restricted in size, would be designed to maximise the social, intellectual and economic potential of a community, and would offer the advantages of living in town and in the country in terms of cultural, educational, recreational and environmental amenities.

Howard emigrated to the [[United States]] in 1871, living in [[Nebraska]] and [[Chicago]], but returned to London in 1876, working as a clerk and sometime Parliamentary reporter. He became a supporter of [[Henry George]], whose single tax proposals were to influence Howard's work. In 1898 Howard published ''To-Morrow: A Peaceful Path to Real Reform'', republished under its more familiar title ''Garden Cities of To-Morrow'' in 1902. In it, he argued that the problems of ever-expanding cities, and the poor social conditions within them, could be solved by instead building self-contained networks of 'Garden Cities' which would be restricted in size, would be designed to maximise the social, intellectual and economic potential of a community, and would offer the advantages of living in town and in the country in terms of cultural, educational, recreational and environmental amenities.

Howard's model saw urban refugees building up a city until it reached a population of 32,000, wherupon a new city would be started nearby. Ultimately, Howard saw the creation of a network of such cities: six such surrounding a slightly larger city of 58,000, the settlements divided by green belt land and linked by high speed urban railways. Such a grouping of cities, he believed, would provide all the advantages of a single large city, and few, if any, of the drawbacks. His economic system drew on George: land would be municipally-owned, and revenue derived from the increasing value of this land as the cities developed would be used to provide public services, even old age pensions; the need for individuals to pay municipal rates would dwindle and disappear.

Howard's model saw urban refugees building up a city until it reached a population of 32,000, whereupon a new city would be started nearby. Ultimately, Howard saw the creation of a network of such cities: six such surrounding a slightly larger city of 58,000, the settlements divided by green belt land and linked by high speed urban railways. Such a grouping of cities, he believed, would provide all the advantages of a single large city, and few, if any, of the drawbacks. His economic system drew on George: land would be municipally-owned, and revenue derived from the increasing value of this land as the cities developed would be used to provide public services, even old age pensions; the need for individuals to pay municipal rates would dwindle and disappear.

In 1899 Howard founded the Garden Cities Association which survives as the Town & Country Planning Association (TCPA). With supporter, he managed to gather sufficient finance to start work on the first Garden City at [[Letchworth]], [[Hertfordshire]], in 1903. The town was designed by the architects [[Raymond Unwin]] and [[Barry Parker]], broadly along the lines suggested in Howard's book. Most of the housing was provided by [[co-partnership]] housing associations; employment was provided by radically-minded businessmen who had been persuaded to support the project, like the publisher Dent, but the largest single employer was Spirola, a corset manufacturer, very much at odds with the sandal-wearing, rational dress, Esperantist and folk-dancing ethos of the new town.

In 1899 Howard founded the Garden Cities Association which survives as the Town & Country Planning Association (TCPA). With supporter, he managed to gather sufficient finance to start work on the first Garden City at [[Letchworth]], [[Hertfordshire]], in 1903. The town was designed by the architects [[Raymond Unwin]] and [[Barry Parker]], broadly along the lines suggested in Howard's book. Most of the housing was provided by [[co-partnership]] housing associations; employment was provided by radically-minded businessmen who had been persuaded to support the project, like the publisher Dent, but the largest single employer was Spirola, a corset manufacturer, very much at odds with the sandal-wearing, rational dress, Esperantist and folk-dancing ethos of the new town.