ABSTRACT
In 1814, Father George Rapp and approximately 1,000 followers established the town of New Harmony, Indiana, in the frontier wilderness of the Wabash River Valley. The small village where Rapp and his followers resided for ten years was the second of several American towns the group constructed after emigrating from the German Duchy of Württemberg in 1803. Housing was the principal challenge facing the Harmonists following their move to the Indiana frontier. Log houses were constructed upon the group’s arrival in 1814 and served many families throughout their ten-year presence. Beginning about 1820, the log houses were steadily replaced with timber frame and brick residences and dormitories known as community houses. Harmonists should take place in communally held spaces such as the market, workplace, or church, but not at the family residence. Tree-ring analysis was performed in the dormitory’s third story and attic spaces.
