Snapshot of painting showing the Icarian colony.
Amana Colonies Street scene 
Bird's-eye view in Amana Colonies
Amana Colonies are Established
Life in the Amana Colonies
Change in the Amana Society
The Icarians
The AmishCommunal Groups
During
the nineteenth century thousands of Americans formed communal societies. The
people within the communes worked for the common good. No one received wages.
No one owned property. Over 250 communal groups formed in the United States
before 1960. Many of them were very short-lived. Perhaps the most well-known
communal society, the Shakers, flourished in the eastern United States. At
one point the Shakers had over 5,000 members. Sometimes communal groups were
created by people of a particular religious group. Other times people formed
communal societies because they were unhappy with the world as it was. They
thought that they could create a “utopia,” or perfect world.
Communal groups generally share common characteristics. Usually they are formed
for either religious or economic reasons. Historically, religious communal
groups tended to last longer and were more successful. Communal groups tend
to be small and established in a confined place. They have a lifestyle that
is different from that of the people who live nearby.
At least a dozen communal societies formed in Iowa during the nineteenth century.
Most of these groups lasted for very short periods of time. Two, Amana and
Icaria, survived for decades. The Amish, while not truly a communal society,
are similar to communal groups. They share community labor and provide support
among members.
The Amana Society
In 1855 the Society of True Inspiration
came to Iowa from what is now Germany, Switzerland and eastern France. The
Inspirationists, as the members were called, settled along the Iowa River
in Iowa County. They purchased 26,000 acres of land and established seven
villages made up of churches, shops and living quarters.
For many years the Inspirationists lived and worked as a true commune. This
commune was a supportive community in which possessions and responsibilities
are shared. However, over time changes occurred in the way the group
lived. In 1932 the Inspirationists formed the Amana Society as a business
corporation. The Amana Church Society formed to continue the religious life
of the community.
In 2005 the Amana Society, Inc. continues to run many of the businesses. The
Amana Church Society is an active religion group. The Amanas are a popular
tourist attraction and include a variety of craft shops, boutiques, wineries
and a brewery in addition to the famous furniture shops and restaurants for
which they have been known for decades.
Icaria
Followers
of a Frenchman named Etienne Cabet moved to Adams County, Iowa, in 1855. They
were known as the Icarians. They farmed 3,000 acres of land near Corning.
There were rarely more than 75 members in the community. In 1878 a controversy
divided the community. The group that broke away failed in 1886, leaving the
original group to carry on. But the end for this group also came in 1898.
Amish
The Amish were followers of Jakob Ammann and began arriving in Iowa in the 1840s. The originally settled in Buchanan and Washington Counties. The main beliefs of the Amish are pacifism, a refusal to swear oaths, adult baptism, separation from the outside world and an economy based as much as possible on agriculture. A number of Amish groups live in Iowa in 2005. Settlements have been established at Kalona, Hazelton, Milton, Oelwein, Bloomfield, McIntire and Riceville.
Other Iowa Communes
Other Iowa communal groups lasted
for only a few years and, in some cases, for just a few months. The Iowa Pioneer
Phalanx located near Oskaloosa lasted only about a year. A second group, Garden
Grove, existed in Decatur County in 1848, although so little is known about
this group that some historians believe that it never got farther than the
planning stage. Hopewell, a community located in Clarke County, lasted for
a short time before disintegrating in 1852.
Communia was the most successful of Iowa’s secular communal societies.
It formed in 1847 but disagreements led to dissolution of the colony within
a few years.
The Jasper Kolonie was a small communal group of German immigrants who came
to Iowa County in 1851. The members of this colony were members of the Swedenborgian
Church. Although no longer an active congregation, many descendants of the
colony still live in the area.
New Buda was a small colony founded by a Hungarian count and his followers
in Decatur County in southern Iowa in 1850. The colony disappeared within
a few years.
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints settled in Iowa
for a time. A colony called Zarahelma was abandoned when it was determined
the land title was worthless. A colony was located at Manti and another in
Monona County called Preparation which lasted from 1853 to 1858.
A group not often thought of as communal are the Trappist Monks of New Melleray
Abbey near Peosta. The abbey was founded in 1849, and today the monks farm
and make furniture.
Sources:
- "Three Communities of Belief." The Iowa Heritage: A Guide for Teachers. Johnston: Iowa Public Television, 1979.
- Marchand Ross, M. Child of Icaria. Corning: Gauthier Publishing Co., 1938.
- Schwieder, E. and D. A Peculiar People: Iowa's Old Order Amish. Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1975.
- Sutton, R. Les Icariens: The Utopian Dream in Europe and America. Champaign: University of Illinois Press, 1994.
- "Visiting the Amana Colonies." The Goldfinch 13, No. 4 (April 1992). Iowa City: State Historical Society of Iowa.
- Yambura, B. A Change and a Parting. Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1960.
