The Kaweah Colony was a

utopian socialist Utopian socialism is the term often used to describe the first current of modern socialism and socialist thought as exemplified by the work of Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, Étienne Cabet, and Robert Owen. Utopian socialism is often de ...

community in central

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

founded in 1886, with a name meaning "here we rest." Located in the Sierra Nevada range, they lived near groves of

giant sequoia ''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (giant sequoia; also known as giant redwood, Sierra redwood, Sierran redwood, California big tree, Wellingtonia or simply big treea nickname also used by John Muir) is the sole living species in the genus ''Sequoiade ...

trees. The colony officially disbanded in 1892. The establishment of

Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and today protects of forested mountainous terrain. Encompassing a vertical relief ...

in 1890 contributed to the colony's demise. Some of their descendants still reside in the area.

History

Establishment

Inspired by the writings of

Laurence Gronlund Laurence Gronlund (, Available 1844–1899) was a Danish-born American lawyer, writer, lecturer, and political activist. Gronlund is best remembered for his pioneering work in adapting the International Socialism of Karl Marx and Ferdinand La ...

, colony leaders attempted to apply the ideals of

scientific socialism Scientific socialism is a term coined in 1840 by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon in his book '' What is Property?'' to mean a society ruled by a scientific government, i.e., one whose sovereignty rests upon reason, rather than sheer will: Thus, in a given ...

. The writings of United States socialist

Edward Bellamy Edward Bellamy (March 26, 1850 – May 22, 1898) was an American author, journalist, and political activist most famous for his utopian novel ''Looking Backward''. Bellamy's vision of a harmonious future world inspired the formation of numerou ...

also influenced the project. March 9, 1888, the colony was legally established through the ''Deed of Settlement and Bylaws of Kaweah Colony''. This colony based its economy on logging. Membership cost $500 with $100 payable upon application and the remainder in installments of cash or labor. Estimated nationwide membership peaked at 300-500 individuals, many of whom were non-resident supporters. The resident population at its height was around 150. The colony published the local area's first newspaper, the ''Kaweah Commonwealth''. Kaweah Colony was noteworthy for its exploration of giant sequoia groves. The tree now known as the General Sherman tree was originally named the

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

tree by the colonists. The only remaining structure from the group's tenure at Sequoia is the Squatter's Cabin, now listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

Demise and legacy

The colony ran into legal problems when they attempted to continue operations after the creation of the national park, which was California's first national park and only the third in the United States. A U.S. District Court in Los Angeles court convicted them of

illegal logging Illegal logging is the harvest, transportation, purchase or sale of timber in violation of laws. The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal, including using corruption, corrupt means to gain access to forests; extraction without permission, o ...

on April 16, 1891. In January 1892, the Kaweah Cooperative Colony company was dissolved. For more than four decades some colonists attempted to gain government compensation for the loss of their logging claims, but were not successful. Kaweah lives on in name at

Twin Oaks Community Twin Oaks Community is an ecovillage and intentional community of about one hundred people living on in Louisa County, Virginia. It is a member of the Federation of Egalitarian Communities. Founded in 1967, it is one of the longest-enduring and ...

, a contemporary intentional community of 100 members in Virginia. All Twin Oaks' buildings are named after communities that no longer exist, and "Kaweah" is the name of the largest and most eco-featured residence.

Footnotes

External links

Kaweah Commonwealth OnlineUnited States Park Service
publication about Kaweah Colony
Norton, Marc. "The Karl Marx Tree: How Southern Pacific Railroad killed a socialist colony in the name of creating Yosemite National Park," ''48 Hills'', August 27, 2014.

History

Establishment

Demise and legacy

Footnotes

Further reading

External links

See also