The last Harmonist left Harmony, Indiana in May 1825. Pennsylvania had a higher German population, with folks who aligned more with their beliefs, and it also was closer to the bigger markets in the east, allowing them to thrive even more in their manufacturing businesses. By the mid 1820’s, about 10 years after founding Harmony, the Harmonists put their city up for sale, and bought new land in Pennsylvania, still in search of their utopian society. With not only the culture of the people being German, but the economy was like any town in Germany.īut alas, utopias do not last forever. Visitors to the city remarked that they felt they were in the middle of Germany when they visited Harmony. The skill and work ethic of the Harmonists created a manufacturing hub. They thrived as a town though through this period. Perhaps, the beginning of the end to their utopia. The problem, as stated by Rapp himself, was that these new settlers did not have the same moral and mannered life of the Harmonists. Harmony began to attract new settlers, many from Rapp’s community from Wurttemberg, Germany. They chose this area for its isolation, but also for its flat land and proximity to nearby hills for vineyards, and rivers for transportation.

A place where they could live in isolation and practice their faith. So, in a sense, New Harmony was founded upon the idea of it being a Utopia for the Harmonists. They had fled their town in Pennsylvania, with the same name, due to the rising population in the area, which infringed upon their desire for isolation. The town was named Harmony, after their society. The town was first settled in 1814 by George Rapp, a member of the Harmony Society, who was seeking settlements that would allow them to practice their religion in isolation. Well, what does that have to do with New Harmony, IN? Let us start at the beginning of New Harmony’s story. The quintessential Utopia was the Garden of Eden, where everything was beautiful and there was no sense of good and evil. It is a dream that has been around for many years.īut what is Utopia? The common definition is that it is the perfect place to live. Books and movies have been written about Utopia. People have tried to create utopias for centuries.

New harmony