Communia is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
located in
Clayton County Clayton County is the name of two counties in the United States:
* Clayton County, Georgia in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area
* Clayton County, Iowa
It was also the former name of Clay County, Arkansas
Clay County is a county located in the U.S. ...
,
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, in the south half of section 8,
Volga Township. The area was established as a German colony in 1847.
History
In early 1847 a group of
pioneers, consisting of nine Germans (among them, Heinrich Koch) and one Frenchman, met in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
to set off for new land under the direction of Joseph Venus. The group traveled north by
steamer to the area of
Dubuque
Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...
. After buying necessary provisions, the group left on foot with only one wagon and three oxen to the northwestern area of
Volga Township.
After one night of rest the men immediately began building and organizing the area. During the first year, three log houses and one blacksmith shop were built.
The men welcomed anyone who wished to join, no matter how much or how little they contributed, and over the next few years the colony began to flourish.
The community prided themselves for the peaceful and welcoming environment they had created. The colony maintained a good relationship with the large
Native American population and regularly traded with other emerging colonies within the area.
In 1851, the German communist
Wilhelm Weitling
Wilhelm Christian Weitling (October 5, 1808 – January 25, 1871) was a German tailor, inventor, radical political activist and one of the first theorists of communism. Weitling gained fame in Europe as a social theorist before he emigrated t ...
came to Communia and became its administrator.
Despite the great success of the colony, the area dissolved in 1858 after much of the land and property was sold off by various families.
[History of Clayton County 1882](_blank)
, Chapter XL: Volga Township, page 1116-1118. The population of Communia was just 12 in 1902. The population was again 12 in 1940.
References
Unincorporated communities in Clayton County, Iowa
Unincorporated communities in Iowa
1847 establishments in Iowa
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