Oneida

The most notorious commune in the 19th century was John Humphrey Noyes' Oneida. He had a vision that believers should live in a community and that they should practice free sex. God or higher spirits gave the vision for a community. Satan or evil spirits gave him the vision for free sex. Their sick community lasted for decades until their neighbors found out that Noyes was the one who introduced sex to young girls when they reached puberty at the ages of 12 and 13. He escaped when he heard that he was going to arrested for statutory rape and soon the community faded away. They lived in a big house called The Mansion. Here is a picture of the house that is today a museum and has some rooms lived in by descendents of the community. The community turned itself into a corporation and now the business of Oneida is the foremost maker of silverware in the world. The company has no ties to the past.