The first credit union in the United States was founded in 1909. by the group of Franco-American Catholics in Manchester, New Hampshire, and was called "Cooperative Credit Association of St. Mary. " Activity of the credit union consists of organizing mutual financial assistance by meeting the needs of its members in the services of saving and obtaining loans. As of the January 1, 2012 the national associations and confederations unite more than 196 million members participating in the 51,013 credit unions in 100 countries. Credit unions appeared in England in the 19th century. In 1844 a group of workers from Rochdale established the first cooperative. Credit unions historically formed as a special form of social support, initially taken upon themselves the social mission of protecting the interests of citizens in the field of financial services. U.S. credit unions have another significant difference from the credit cooperatives of farmers: the first have major proportion of short-term loans, the second - long and mostly in real estate. Worldwide credit union movement is represented by regional confederations and national organizations within the World Council of Credit Unions.