A few background words on the Alphadelphia Association, on these pages and some technical matters concerning the pages.

Individuals in database

The society at its peak had 188 recorded members on the domain and perhaps more than 300 including those living off site. For member sources I am going by a list of Shareholders provided to a Catherine Livingston, by the U. of Michigan, back in the late 50s, a list of holders of cancelled certificates, and mentions in various articles of other participating individuals. This database falls short of the number of members Alphadelphia had at its peak. Census records and other records at the U. of Michigan which would augment the list are not at my disposal.

The database is an outgrowth of research on the Noyes family and knowledge that James Allen Noyes, son of James Noyes (a president at Alphadelphia), participated in some other communes of the day after Alphadelphia folded. James Noyes was related to John Humphrey Noyes, of Oneida fame, and John Humphey Noyes' sister having moving to Michigan, her brother-in-law was a member of the Alphadelphia Society. Oral family history has James Allen Noyes traveling at least to Oneida and participating in the Berlin Heights Community where he apparently met his wife, and also gives him as perhaps participating in a phalanx in Wisconsin. A dated document also shows him in Lagrange, Indiana, site of another phalanx. A page remaining from an address book is our only documentation of a connection with Berlin Heights, nearly all the papers in a trunk holding documents concerning the family's association with Alphadelphia and other communes destroyed during the McCarthy years.

It would be interesting to know more about cross-fertilization between communes, following members' movements (especially with their closing), and how many members of folded communes, such as the family of James Allen Noyes, may have eventually moved to Liberal, Missouri in the 1880s, given as the only "free thinkers" community in the United States, founded by George Walser. That being beyond me, I am endeavoring to come up with some brief gene background on different Alphadelphia members so that we may know a little more about these individuals. I do not in this database replicate the Noyes genealogy and associated families. For that information please go to the:
Noyes-Brewer Family Genealogy pages.

Alphadelphia Background and Articles on hand

An experiment in Fourierism, the Alphadelphia Association, known also early on as the Washtenaw Phalenx. The first convention of the Alphadelphia Association was called 14 December 1843, their first meeting on their domain held 21 March 1844. The Association's last journal entry was 30 April 1848, and a meeting was held 1 August 1848 for the purpose of disposing of the deeds of the members in attendance. Presidents from 1844 to 1848 are given as: Anson DELAMATTER, Benjamin WRIGHT, Harvey KEITH, Lyman TUBBS and James NOYES. But the Association was still to some extent in existence with acting officers afterwards as on 11 August 1857 a few members met for the pupose of disposing the books of the Association as the secretary was moving to Kansas. The last acting president was Charles Luke Keith, who was present at that last meeting where was announced, "And thus ended the Alphadelphia Association."

As mentioned above, during the McCarthy years, the Noyes family destroyed documents from the Alphadelphia Association and other materials concerning involvement of family in other utopian communities.

Barbara Triphahn, a descendant of Charles Luke KEITH (also a president of the Alphadelphia Association) responded to a posting of mine on the internet requesting contact with anyone who might have information on the Association. She supplied a number of newspaper articles from the early 1900s and the Alphadelphia Society Constitution, links to which are placed below.

Also thanks to Nancy BENTON, for a copy of the paper the "Alphadelphiia Association" prepared by Catherine Livingston in 1958, whose research was based on documents loaned to her through Mrs. F. J. Buckley of Kalamazoo who had purchased records from Ethan Keith and Hannah Keith Towne. The paper has been transcribed and is again linked to below.

"The Alphadelphia Association" from a History of Kalamazoo Co., MI by Everts and Abbott, published 1880.

Read transcription of article at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/comstock.htm. Courtesy of Nancy Benton. Transcribed by jk.

Alphadelphia Constitution.

View images of the Alphadelphia Constitutiion at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/constitution.htm Courtesy of Barbara Triphahn.

Alphadelphia Shareholders.

View list of shareholders at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/images/shareholders.jpg.
View transcribed list of shareholders at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/images/shareholders.htm. Source: University of Michigan, Michigan Historical Collections Courtesy of Nancy Benton. Transcribed by jk.

"Alphadelphia Association" by Catherine Livingston, 1958

View transcription of Catherine Livingston's "Alphadelphia Association" at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/livingston.htm

"Farm Society Sought Utopia in 1843, Lasted Four years" From the Kalamazoo Gazette, October 18, 1925.

View image at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/images/alphadelphia1925article.gif.
View transcription at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/alphadelphia1925article.htm. Courtesy of Nancy Benton. Transcribed by JK.

"Why Galesburg was made Alphadelphia Society Home" From the Kalamazoo Gazette, Jan 14, 1937

View transcription of article at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/galesburg.htm. Courtesy of Barbara Triphahn. Transcribed by JK.

"Death of E. B. Keith in 1934 Reveals Society's Records" From the Kalamazoo Gazette, 24 Jan 1937

View transcription at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/keith.htm. Courtesy of Barbara Triphahn. Transcribed by JK.

"Society Planned Public Library and a Seminary" From the Kalamazoo Gazette, 24 Jan 1935.

View transcription at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/poorfarm.htm. Courtesy of Barbara Triphahn. Transcribed by JK.

"Colony Listed 188 Residents in May of 1845" From the Kalamazoo Gazette, 24 Jan 1937

View transcription at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/colony.htm. Courtesy of Barbara Triphahn. Transcribed by JK.

"Paper Gives Details of Old Society" Kalamazoo Gazette. 1962.

View image at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/images/alphadelphia1962article.gif.
View transcription at http://evermore.imagedjinn.com/alphadelphia1962article.htm Courtesy of Nancy Benton. Transcribed by jk.

Resources on Alphadelphia:

Alphadelphia Association Reports of the General Council, 1845 are at the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan.

Title: Alphadelphia Association records, 1843-1848. Author: Alphadelphia Association. Description: 1 linear ft. and 3 oversize v. Biography/History: Communitarian society located near Kalamazoo, Michigan. Summary: Constitution, census, membership records, reports of committees, labor records, financial accounts, minutes of directors, correspondence and miscellaneous papers. Finding aids: Finding aid in the library. Subjects: Cooperative societies--Michigan. Galesburg (Mich.) Kalamazoo County (Mich.) Subjects (Name) Alphadelphia Association. Cridland, Charles R. Keith, Harvey. Noyes, James. Schettlerly, Henry R. Tubbs, Lyman. Contributors: Denton, Samuel, 1803-1860. Notes: Donor: 3391 Microfilm copy available. Holdings Location: BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY (Non-Circulating, Closed Stacks) Call No: 85597 Bj 2 BJ Outsize

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Title Alphadelphia Association records [microform], 1843-1848. Author Alphadelphia Association. Description 3 microfilm reels : positive. 3 microfilm reels : master negative. 3 microfilm reels : print master. Biography/History Communitarian society located near Kalamazoo, Michigan. Summary Constitution, census, membership records, reports of committees, labor records, financial accounts, minutes of directors, correspondence and miscellaneous papers. Finding aids Finding aid in the library. Subjects Cooperative societies--Michigan. Galesburg (Mich.) Kalamazoo County (Mich.) Subjects (Name) Cridland, Charles R. Keith, Harvey. Noyes, James. Schettlerly, Henry R. Tubbs, Lyman. Alphadelphia Association. Contributors Denton, Samuel, 1803-1860. Notes Donor: 3391 Original available. Holdings Location: BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY (Non-Circulating, Closed Stacks) Call No: 93848 mf232c 233c 234c

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Title Alphadelphia tocsin. Published Alphadelphia, Mich. Alphadelphia Association, Frequency Weekly Numbering Vol. 1, no. 1 (Dec. 6, 1844)- Subjects Alphadelphia (Mich.)--Newspapers. Kalamazoo County (Mich.)--Newspapers. Subjects (Other) Newspapers--1841-1850--Michigan--Alphadelphia. Contributors Alphadelphia Association. Other Titles Tocsin Holdings Location: BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY (Non-Circulating, Closed Stacks) Call No: NB A457 T632 Library has: <1844:12:6>

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Title Alphadelphia Association : a Michigan communitarian experiment 1843-1848. Author Glynn, Lawrence E. Published [n.p.] 1964 Description 1 v. Subjects Cooperative societies--Michigan. Subjects (Name) Alphadelphia Association. Holdings Location: BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY (Non-Circulating, Closed Stacks) Call No: FJ 2 A456 G568

The A. J. MacDonald Collection of Utopian Materials at Yale University, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, General Collection of Rare Books and Manuscripts, has some unpublished research material on Alphadelphia, and other Utopian communities, by MacDonald. Courtesy of Nancy Benton. Transcribed by jk.

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Contact

Please contact me at moremailforme at mindspring.com for corrections, or if you have Alphadelphia information, gene information, photos, obituaries, or other data you would like to contribute.