New Harmony, Indiana is a quaint town with bustling businesses
surrounded by two hundred years of history, and some spritely spirits. In fact,
most of the buildings in the town are haunted. What could cause so much
paranormal activity? A myriad of things, apparently. |
| Johann Georg Rapp |
The first settlers to the area were members of the Harmonie
Society, more than 800 German Lutheran immigrants who were followers of Father Johann Georg Rapp. Also known as
Rappites, the religious group believed in a literally interpertation of the
Bible and sought Christian perfection by practicing celibacy while living
highly ordered and productive lives.
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| Rapp-Owen Granary |
These men and women built more than 160 buildings including a
church and graveyard, school, cotton
mill, grain mills, sawmills, tanneries, winery, brewery and other businesses. The
Harmonists lived here from 1814 to 1824 when they returned to Pennsylvania to
form another community.
 |
| Robert Owen |
Then came another utopian group called the Owenites. This group
was the polar opposite of the Harmonists. Founder Robert Owens wanted to
establish a new moral social utopia, one that stressed education and the equality of men and women while shunning marriage and religion. Members of his movement,
more than 700 people, came to live here along the banks of the Wabash River.
Although the community lasted only a couple of years, it established the first free school system
in America including something known as kindergarten. The group completely disbanded in 1829 due
to a lack of funds.
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| Wabash River |
Two groups so radically different in their beliefs could make
for an interesting paranormal situation. Then factor in the influence of the
river and the beliefs of the Native Americans, and you have an interesting mix of beliefs and
cultures.
 |
| Destruction of Griffin, Indiana - nine miles away |
Then there was the Tri-State tornado of 1925 . The mile-wide twister ripped
through Missouri, Southern Illinois and Southern Indiana killing 695 people
during its three hours on the ground. New Harmony was in its path and
52 people died here. Their bodies were taken to the Ribeyre
Gymnasium so next of kin could identify them. That’s another spot with lots of
paranormal activity.
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| The Harmonist or Rappite Cemetery |
Native Americans seemed to know that the area was a hotspot of
activity. The Harmonists didn’t mention it, but the Owenites, with their
interest in science, would have been curious as to what was causing all the
incidents.
 |
| Fauntleroy House |
The first reported haunting was in 1848 in the Fauntleroy Home when
a guest reported passing “the resident ghost” on the stairs as she was retiring
for bed. The home was renovated a few years ago and paranormal activity has
picked up. In fact, it's the most haunted house in town. One reason may be the adjacent cemetery.
More than 200 Rappites are buried in the Harmonist Cemetery, all
in unmarked graves due to the sect's belief in equality for all of its members. A wall constructed of bricks from the old
Harmonist church surrounds the graveyard. Also located here are several burial
mounds of Native Americans from the Middle Woodland period, about 2,000 years
ago.  |
| Outside the Cemetery Wall |
New Harmony, Indiana is worth a trip just to soak up the ambience, but
don’t be surprised if you catch a shadow person pass by – it's a town where
some residents never leave.
Joy
