Koreshan Unity Settlement
by BloggerInParadise on Aug.22, 2010, under Meanderings
Gustav Damkohler's house.
We went to visit the Koreshan State Park in Estero this weekend. This was one of several communal societies in the U.S. at the turn of the century. The group came to Estero in 1894 and founded their settlement on land provided by Gustav Damkohler. They flourished for awhile and then began to die out and the last of them donated the 305 acres to the state in 1961. Probably part of the cause was their belief in celibacy. It’s hard to have more Koreshians with celibacy as the rule! Another interesting belief they had was that we lived on the inside of the earth, not on the outside. They “proved” it mathematically and offered $10,000 to anyone that could show that their “proof” was incorrect. The money was never claimed. Either we’re living on the inside or no one could disprove their math??? Very interesting place to visit. You can view the old buildings, camp, fish, canoe down the Estero river, etc. Definitely drop by and spend some time there. Here are some links to additional info. Florida State Parks. FloridaTraveler.com. Definitely click on the thumbnails for much larger pics.
A member's house
The Path in
The Founders House
Estero River from the Bamboo Landing
Machine Shops and Power Plant
The Planetary Court
August 22nd, 2010 on 10:01 am
If you like unusual history, this place has it. Nice area to walk around. Sometimes there are art shows, etc. happening on weekend. Right on the 41.
August 23rd, 2010 on 10:07 am
Great pics. Glad I clicked on the thumbs.
August 24th, 2010 on 9:38 am
How come so many of the windows are boarded up?
August 24th, 2010 on 9:40 am
The reason that they are boarded up is that it is hurricane season here. With the limited help they have, if a hurricane heads this way, it would be very difficult to get those second floor windows covered.