Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, October, 1877. Vol XX - No. 118Various
History
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, October, 1877. Vol XX - No. 118
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- Periodicals
The Separatists at Zoar, Ohio, about halfway between Cleveland and
Pittsburg, are a body of Germans who fled from Wuertemberg in 1817 to escape
religious persecution. They are mystics, followers of Jacob Boehm, Gerhard,
Terstegen, Jung Stilling and others of that class, and considerably above
the average of communists in intellect and culture. They were aided to
emigrate to this country by some English Quakers, with whom there is a
resemblance in some of their tenets. They purchased fifty-six hundred acres
of land in Ohio, but did not at first intend to form a community, having
been driven to that resort subsequently in order to the better realization
of their religious principles. They now own over seven thousand acres of
land in Ohio, besides some in Iowa. They have a woollen-factory, two
flour-mills, a saw-mill, a planing-mill, a machine-shop, a tannery and a
dye-house; also a hotel and store for the accommodation of their neighbors.
They are industrious, simple in their dress and food, and very economical.
They use neither tobacco nor pork, and are homoeopathists in medicine. In
religion they are orthodox, with the usual latitude of mystics. They have
no ceremonies, say "thou" and "thee," take off their hats and bow to nobody
except God, refuse to fight or go to law, and settle their disputes by
arbitration. At first they prohibited marriage and had their women in
common, like the Perfectionists. In 1828, however, they commenced to break
their rules and take wives. Now they observe the marriage state. Their
officers are elected by the whole society, the women voting as well as the
men.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account