Daily Yellowstone journal., 1885-07-31
The HARMoNIsTs OF Pennsylvania
Career and Operations OF the Peculiar
Community Dying Out.

lNoun stown tDhiol Cor. Chicago Herald
There has always centered about the
sect of llLrmonists {, halo of interest
because of their peeuliarties and Seclu-
Sive tendencies. Tie founder of this
rich colony located at Economy, on The
banSs of the Beaver river, was George
lay, who was horn in Wurtemburg in
lao. Believing he lad a divine call
and was charged with a restoration
Of the Christian religion TO its
original purity, he organized
lied a colony on the model of the prin-
tive church, with goods and chattelS in
common. This soon involved Him and
his followers in trouble with his govern
ment, and compelled him to transplant
the community, in 1903. TO the nlted
states They settled first on the Con,
nequenessng creek, in Butler county,
where they founded the village OF Har-
mony and employed themselves IN agri-
culture and manufacture by industry
and thrift they acquired considerable
wealth and in ISIS they remove in a
body to Indiana, where they purchased
and located upon =, UaO acres of land
along the banks o. the Wabash river
The settlement OF New Harmony was
even more prosperous than the first had
been, but the climate was not Satlsfac'
tory, and in 1891, after numerous cOun-
ellis, they sold out and moved back TO
Pennsylvania, this time locating in
Beaver county, on the right bank OF the
Ohio river, where they purchased $500
acres Of beautiful farming lands and
where they soon afterward laid out the
town of Economy. Here is where they
are located at present, surrounded by
peace and plenty They are a strange
peOple-dO not believe in marriage, but
all ave together as brothers and sisters
and practice the Strictest morality.
In 1888 the question of marriage was
the leading one in the community and
about 2OJ members withdrew because
they favored marriages and established
the town Of Phillipsburg, but the new
colony did not prosper, and after a few
years struggling they sold out and dis
banded, dividing the proceeds of their
sales equally among all the members.
In the meantime the HarmOnists were
gradually becoming more and more
wealthy, until at present they own
jointly and in common lands, stocks,
bonds and herds, the value of which is
estimated al So, 900, 900. ResideS own
ing al of Economy and large part Of
Beaver, they own an entire county in
Dakota, in the valley of the hel River
Of the North
cut OF their surplus moneys they
built aud equipped the Pittsburgh Lake
Erie railroad, running through a rich
and fertile country from lttsburg 10
oungstown. and owned the controlling
interest in il until the road was sold to
the Nanderbilts. Ii is said that on this
deal alone they made IS per cent. on
their investment, as the road turned
out to be one of the best-paying lines
in the country. 1t is matter Of his
tory that at the time the war broke out,
in 1861, they converted all their bonds
and available property into money and
buried it, using the treasure afterwards
in paving for the building of the rail
road. The payments thus made put in
circulation an immense amount of sill
yer, many of the pieces dating back 10
800.
Owing 10 the Law prohibiting mai
rilge the sect has gradually diminishec
until at present il consists of only thiI
teen men and fort; women, all OF then
well advanced in years. They emplo,
over 200 servants and farm
hands, and these. with their families,
make quite village Everything is
owned in common. The grocer, the
baker, the butcher and the milkman go
the rounds every day and supply the
different families with the necessities
and a few of the luxurieS of life. Moth
ing can be bought in the village of Econ
omy, and il is probably the only town
in the world where man cannot, even
il he desires. spend money. They are
extremely liberal and philanthropic,
and are constantly doing acts of
benevolenee Their houses, which
are all exactly alike, are an equal
distance apart. and are at
uniform distance from the village street.
They are painted pure white and have
no front doors, claiming that if they
had these cOnyeniences the women folks
would spend too much time looking at
and gosSiping with pasSers-by.
y ROOu Story - ICldlCu i'll luis COuutc~
ton that the president of the commun.
ity score of years ago imagined that
there was too much familiarity between
the young men and maldens, and so
promulgated an or .er that all females
appearing on the street after dark must
carry lanterns, but still the merry.mak-
ing continued, although no lanterns ap.
peared. This caused an investigation,
which developed the fact that the
worthy old gentleman had neglected TO
order that the lanterns should he
lighted.
As stated, there are now only thirteen
men and forty women lie { Of the once
large colony. and they being old il is
likely that the law against celibacy will
cause the determination of the colony in
a few years more According TO their
laws, MS long MS three of them hold to-
gether the property is to remain intact,
but when one Of the final trio dies the
other two lose all right to The property
and must leave. As there are no heirs
the $4,000, 900 which they possess in
real and personal property will come
into the possession OF the state OF Penn
sylyania, and will form handsome
legacy.