The Harmonists

Abstract

The story of the Harmonists is long and involved, and for that reason merits a separate chapter. There is a great deal to tell about Harmony, as it crosses several state lines and highlights a variety of leaders. Even when this century-long empire fell into the dust, there was confusion about its exact nature and legal makeup. Reibel (1993:9) notes that when the Harmony Society dissolved in 1905 the State of Pennsylvania tried to seize the property. Their attempt was unsuccessfully fought in the courts when it was discovered that the society had never been registered as a religious organization. This shocked many observers because the origins and history of the commune were always cast in religious language. After all, their revered founder, George Rapp (1757–1847), was himself a minister of the Separatist Gospel. In 1916, the state legislature finally acknowledged the secular nature of the organization, but despite this, the state inherited only the block of the town that includes the museum. The rest was allotted to and divided among remaining members. The end result is that today the historic town of Economy is jointly operated by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and the Harmony Associates (Reibel, 1993:9).