New Lanark was founded as a cotton mill village in 1768, and was one of the most celebrated examples of a Utopian socialist society during the Industrial Revolution in Europe under the management of Robert Owen. Owen greatly improved the conditions, facilities, and services for the workers and their families, leading to many social improvements including progressive education, factory reform, more humane working practices and garden cities. Cotton-spinning mills, powered by water from the River Clyde in Southern Scotland, and tenement style housing for the workforce were built from local sandstone. By 1820, the population of the village was around 2,500, the largest cotton-manufacturing center in the country at that time. It is now a popular tourist attraction and is home to the New Lanark Visitor Centre and New Lanark Mill Hotel. New Lanark was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001 and is also an Anchor Point of ERIH - The European Route of Industrial Heritage.