Collection

Communal Societies

Alternative Title

Reunion Community

Collection Designation

Special Collections

Genre

Publications

Language

English

Description

Alcander Longley was a lifelong communitarian who, after early involvements in Fourierist and Icarian communities, founded a series of mainly short-lived communities of his own. In 1868 he and five others contracted to purchase 160 acres of land near Carthage, Missouri, and soon built a house and made other improvements. Financial problems made Reunion (which Longley also referred to as the True Family) unable to make its first land payment that year, however, and the holding was reduced to 40 acres. New members arrived, taking the membership as high as 27, but several were interested in free love, and the dispute over their unconventional views of marriage split the community in 1870. Financial problems continued, and the land was finally given up; Longley immediately began to seek supporters for his next venture, the Friendship Community. - Timothy Miller, University of Kansas

Institutional Owner

Hamilton College Library Digital Collections

Restrictions on Access

There are no restrictions on access to this resource.