Bryn Athyn: The Founding of a Religious Community in the Gilded Age

Diahnne Halterman
Senior Research Essay. Bryn Athyn College
of the New Church, 1994.

Chapter 1: Nineteenth Century America
Chapter 2: Cities in the "Gilded Age"
Chapter 3: Religion in the "Gilded Age"
Chapter 4: The New Church in the "Gilded Age"
Chapter 5: The Move to the Country

Introduction

Communities as a rule fail. Failure has been predicted of this movement, but we do not believe there will be failure. ...we believe that the truths which we have, and which we shall endeavor to ultimate will protect us from errors which have caused the failure of other communities. (John Pitcairn, College Letters, no. 13, 12).

When John Pitcairn spoke these words on June 19, 1892, the establishment of a suburban New Church community seemed imminent.1 If that had been the case, the movement to the Bryn Athyn settlement might not have been particularly remarkable.2 In fact, it may have been similar to many other moves to the suburbs in America during the 1890s, had it not been for two events: the financial panic of 1893 and the development of feelings of dissent among key leaders in the church that led to a protracted struggle to define the structure of the New Church community. This struggle was resolved on January 23, 1897 and the final movement to the country followed slightly thereafter. This paper will focus on the initial impetus for a move to the country, the problems that arose, and the reasons why this community was able to remain, mature and prosper. This development, although it has its own unique New Church aspects, can be seen as part of the American drama of the nineteenth century.

America traditionally had been the land of open spaces, but this freedom gradually came to an end during the nineteenth century. In 1890, the frontier was declared officially closed by the United States Census Bureau and the people of America had to find new outlets for their desire to expand. The frontier had been steadily shrinking since the time of the Civil War, when the industrial civilization of the North conquered the agricultural world of the South and the future direction of the nation was set in motion. It was called industrialization. Railroads spread across the untamed areas of the frontier making it possible for these isolated areas to join the large markets and new industrial orientation of the cities. Yet, Americans had long harbored a dislike of cities. They were confining and fostered interdependence. This animosity fed into a resistance to urbanization in the last decades of the nineteenth century. This opposition is seen most clearly in the Granger and Populist movements.

Despite this antagonism, cities continued to grow. As they became larger and more unattractive, due in part to heavy industrialization, many people longed to escape their confining barriers and return to the freedom of the countryside. As a result, the first large scale suburbanization of the nation began during the 1890s.

To understand this suburbanization movement, it is necessary to examine American city life during the latter part of the nineteenth century. This era was known as the "Gilded Age" because it was prosperous and relatively peaceful. The United States was involved in no major wars and manufacturing was on the rise. This brought wealth to the nation which in turn led to abundance in nearly all areas of middle and upper-class life. The newly rich industrialists built houses that were lush and ornate, clothing followed a similar vein and cities were growing larger everyday. Unfortunately, these prosperous conditions created many problems. America looked so attractive and inviting that large numbers of immigrants entered the country at this time. Although they were largely peasant farmers, there was nowhere for them to work but the factories and nowhere for them to live but the cities. Enterprising factory owners found that these immigrants were willing to work for very small wages and proceeded to take advantage of this situation. As a result, immigrants crowded into run-down sections of the city adding to the already dense populations. Also, because of this new cheap labor source, native born factory workers were forced to work for lower wages or not at all. This added to their anger concerning overly demanding working conditions. These workers joined together in unions and began to rise up against their employers to demand better working conditions, higher wages, and job security. This led to an increased amount of turbulence and violence in the cites.

The members of the Advent Society were not immune to these industrial tensions and they, like other Americans, began to seek relief from the problems of the city. The 1890s saw the first of several waves of suburbanization in America that has continued up to the present day. Railroads were beginning to be fully utilized and this made a commute into the city possible, while allowing people to raise their families in a peaceful country environment. For example, a group of communities was established on the outskirts of Philadelphia along the railroad line leading west. These communities became known as the "Main Line" because of their location along the railroad. The New Church community in Bryn Athyn was established along the Newtown railroad line leading out of Philadelphia to the northeast.

The violence and confinement of cities were not the only things that gave the members of the Advent Society the desire to establish their own country community. As cities grew they became increasingly cosmopolitan. People from all races and ethnic backgrounds were now living in the same space. These people brought with them their own cultures and religious practices. These new religions broadened the American religious environment, but this environment was also changing in ways that made the people of the Advent Society uncomfortable.

The scientific advances of the nineteenth century had undermined the fundamentalist interpretation of the Bible. This forced many people to rethink their ideas about religion and brought about a shift in the religious climate. Some people turned away from religion altogether. Science was becoming the new source of ultimate answers to life's problems for these people. Others, known as religious liberals, were able to incorporate these new scientific concepts in to their belief systems. Still others embraced a form of religious zeal which manifested itself in the Social Gospel. Their idea was to love their neighbors and help them wherever possible. Some religious denominations rejected these new scientific theories and kept to a rigid, fundamentalist interpretation of religion. These people believed that a strict lifestyle, based on the teachings of the Bible, would protect them from the corrupted morals of the scientific age. The members of the Advent Society also did not want those who had turned away from religion to influence the beliefs of their young. The answer to these problems, so evident in city life, lay in a separation from them by establishing their own religious community.

The founders of the Bryn Athyn community were not the only ones who wanted to protect their youth from corruption from the secularized world. Religious education took on a new importance during this period. A religious education could instill the "proper" ideas in youth so that when they had to make their way in the world they would be protected from its irreverent ways.

Education in general made great advances during the second half of the nineteenth century. There was an information explosion as a result of the intellectual pursuits of the previous century. This led schools to expand their curriculum from the basic "three Rs" to include social studies and advanced sciences. This push for better education led to the founding and funding of a large number of private schools during the last part of the nineteenth century.

A group of New Church people, who were to form the General Church of Pennsylvania, founded their own Academy during this period. They felt that the beliefs of the New Church could be incorporated into all subjects of education. If youth were instructed in this way, then they would have the tools they needed to make informed decisions about life from their faith and would be more apt to remain loyal to the church. Many people came to believe that the ideal environment for this Academy was a private religious community where religion and social life would be exclusively New Church.

Given this background knowledge, it is then possible to explain how the general cultural of the 1890s, the conditions in the cities, and the religious and intellectual mood of the day specifically affected the people of the Advent Society. These conditions motivated them to move away from the city into the surrounding countryside. These motivations fall into two basic categories: practical and religious. On the practical side, the general American culture of the late nineteenth century was becoming increasingly lavish. This created an atmosphere of self-indulgence that the people of the Advent Society did not want to become a part of their lives. Thus, by removing themselves from the city, the members of the Advent Society could escape what they perceived to be an immoderate lifestyle and practice a simpler and more moral way of life. Also, the oppressive and disorderly state of the cities provided the stimulus for the idea of moving to the freedom of the surrounding countryside. At this time, the ideal of a private home and yard became part of the American dream, a dream in which New Church people shared. The country was beautiful, clean and open; there was enough room for everyone to have fresh air and personal space.

Regarding the religious motivations for the move, the shift in religious views during the "Gilded Age" frightened the people of the New Church because it brought with it the specter of atheism of which they wanted no part. Even before the move, the people of the Advent Society had begun to separate themselves socially from those of the "Old Church".3 The members of the Advent Society thought that the beliefs of the "Old Church" people were based on perverted truths and they did not want these ideas to infect them. The Advent Society began to strive more and more toward a "distinctive" New Church social life. This eventually culminated in the idea of moving completely out of the sphere of the "Old Church" into their own restricted community. Drawing on the idea of shared affections as the basis of heavenly society depicted in the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, the founders of the Bryn Athyn community believed that by dwelling in their own exclusive society they would be living with others with similar affections just as they would in heaven. They were convinced that this was a more proper way of living because in such a community they would be working together to achieve a particular use just as any society in heaven would. The particular use of their society was to be the development and maintenance of the New Church on earth, and the means of performing this use was New Church education. In its own unique environment, New Church education could thrive and remain uncorrupted by the influences of the "Old Church".

However, the move to the country was not a unanimous decision nor did it happen smoothly. In 1892, plans were set for the construction of school buildings at the country site. The financial crisis of 1893 caused a nationwide depression that forced the postponement of these building plans. This setback allowed time for doubt to creep into the minds of a few key leaders concerning the wisdom of the move to the country. Their doubt caused them to question the motivations of those who were planning and managing the move to the country. The doubters believed the move was a ploy on the part of certain individuals, mainly upper class lay men, to gain control of the fledgling religious movement for themselves. This difference in perception eventually led to a confrontation between the supporters of the move and the opposition. As a result of this confrontation, doubt was removed concerning the motives of those who favored a move to the country. This confrontation compelled the members of the Advent Society to reexamine their motives for leaving the city. Perhaps the struggle surrounding this decision strengthened their commitment to the idea of a private religious community, ultimately helping them to succeed where others had failed.

Chapter 1 top
Nineteenth Century America

The New Church community of Bryn Athyn was founded in the last decade of the nineteenth century. In order to center that development in historical context, it will be useful to paint a broad picture of the century, focusing on those aspects which culminated in a flight from the city. This picture includes these aspects: two very different conceptions of the national economy, agriculture vs. industry; the conflict of these conceptions; and, finally, the triumph of industrialization which accelerated urbanization. This picture can be drawn from various theories concerning nineteenth century America.

Theories Concerning Westward Expansion

One of the most prominent theories concerning nineteenth century experience was put forward by Frederick Turner in 1893. Turner's thesis was:

The existence of an area of free land, its continuous recession and the advance of American settlement westward, explain American development (Taylor 1972, 3).

Turner's thesis holds that the frontier offered American's freedom and independence that was unavailable in settled, overcrowded Europe (Taylor 1972, 5). People came to America to get away from the dense populations and restrictive laws of Europe. This trend continued after they settled in America, for whenever a significant amount of people moved into an area of land, a new area of land would be opened beyond it which offered freedom and open space. Gradually, as industry grew, the open space diminished and the economy of the nation no longer focused on agriculture. From economic necessity, people rapidly began to move into the city. There was great resistance to this movement and many tried to refocus the nation on an agricultural economy. There remained a longing for the freedom and independence of country life. Therefore, as soon as they could afford to, many people moved out of the city to the open space of suburbia.

In contrast to the Turner Thesis, it can be argued that the motivations for westward expansion did not involve a visionary dream of freedom but a desire for prosperity. As Michael Kammen points out: ". . . [America offered] greater freedom, opportunity, and bounty than was ever offered to man in all of known history (Kammen 1972, 114)." Naturally, when this great "bounty" began to diminish as more people crowded into the settled areas, there was a push toward the open lands of the West. This land was free to all who would stake a claim, and so, for decades, offered the promise of economic prosperity to Americans. In the words of Frederic Paxson:

No oppressed lower class could be created in a community in which any young man with reasonable nerve and luck might hope to be an independent farmer before he was thirty (Paxson 1932, 158).

By 1890, this dream of achieving individual prosperity through farming had come to an end. After the Civil War, the focus of the national economy had shifted from agriculture to industry making farming an unprofitable enterprise. The city was now the place where Paxson's young man could hope to earn a comfortable living. As a consequence, people began to abandon their farms for the urban life. Cities grew so quickly that it was unclear how to control newly arriving populations. These new arrivals had few job skills and could find work only in low paying factory jobs. They could not afford well maintained apartment complexes, and, as a result, the places they lived became shabby and run-down. This lower-class was ever expanding and more and more sections of the city lapsed into squalor. Cities were no longer seen as places of prosperity but as places of the poor and oppressed. To achieve that "bounty" that America had promised, it became necessary to escape from the city into the beauty of the surrounding countryside where all that could be seen was prosperity and happiness.

Westward Expansion

This change from an agricultural society to an industrial one was gradual. In the beginning of the nineteenth century there was a seemingly unlimited supply of free land in America, plenty for all to earn a comfortable farmer's living. When the eastern seaboard became more densely populated and cities started to expand, it seemed natural for many to move westward to the open land across the Appalachians. However, settling in this area was difficult because it meant that one had to be self-sufficient. The trip across the mountains was made on horseback or by wagon. It was not practical to return to the civilization of the coast for the luxuries of life or even to market crops. In spite of this, as the population continued to expand, people chose to settle in the new region. Gradually, these young settlements grew into civilized towns and became more populated. Due to this increase in population, roads were used more often and, therefore, became larger and more well traveled. This improved transportation considerably and soon the region became fairly civilized.

Around the 1840s, the region immediately west of the Appalachians had been conquered, and there was no open space for easterners who wanted to share in America's promised "bounty". These people decided to make an even more perilous journey and settle on the West Coast. Some went to the Oregon territory to farm the newly opened land there. Others went to California to see if they could achieve instant prosperity through gold mining. The West Coast too, soon became relatively more populated and cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco were founded. This left only the vast area between the Mississippi River and California that remained largely unsettled and offered free land and prosperity to all.

This pattern of settlement was true for the northern region of the nation, but in the South the pattern was slightly different. There were few large cities in the South that took attention away from the agricultural economy. The South was full of fertile soil and rivers on which to transport crops. As a consequence, these people had never needed to be self sufficient because there was usually a nearby market where they could purchase the items that they did not grow or make themselves. This made it possible for southerners to specialize in the big cash crops of tobacco, rice and cotton. As the land became settled, large farms called plantations expanded westward along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico keeping populations near water and the fertile soil it provided. This agricultural lifestyle proved extremely profitable for southerners and they had no interest in giving up their lands to manufacturing and urbanization. They did not need to be part of industry because they could afford to purchase everything that it provided.

The Triumph of Industrialism

By the middle of the century, two distinct economies had arisen in America. In the North, where most of the larger cities were located, the economy was based on industry. In the South, where there was much fertile land and a longer growing season, the economy was based on agriculture. Conflict grew between these societies and ways of life which eventually escalated into the Civil War. The North emerged victorious from this conflict. As a consequence, the government of the reunified nation was controlled by the powers of the North and industrialization. Soon, the entire nation was focused on expanding and developing industry. Perhaps the industry they focused on the most was that of the railroad because it was needed to open communication and transportation between cities all over the country.

Railroads became popular at about the middle of the century. They linked city to city allowing goods to be easily transported between them. Manufacturers were no longer limited to the small market of their particular city but could transport their goods over great distances to reach people throughout the nation. In this way, railroads encouraged industry to expand. Soon, a railroad was laid linking the east and west coasts expanding communication and transportation across the continent. This railroad also made it possible for the region in between the Mississippi and California to open for settlement. Railroads soon covered the vast prairies of the trans-Mississippi West so that between 1870 and 1890 the population of the region went from 6,877,000 to 16, 775,000 (Dulles 1959, 50). Before the railroad network developed, it had been difficult to maintain such a large population because there were few rivers in the area on which farmers could transport their crops through the vast plains to market. Also, these regions had not proved particularly easy to cultivate in the past, but industry had provided advances in farm machinery using steam power that made this task much easier (Russell 1973, 146). The railroad network proved so efficient that soon nearly the entire frontier was settled and there was little free land left in the nation. In 1889, the government opened up the former Indian Territory of Oklahoma for settlement and there was a violent rush on the land. People would stop at nothing to stake their claim on the land because it had grown so scarce (Claitor 1990, 92). In 1890, as a result of the disappearance of free land, the United States Census Bureau declared that the unsettled area "...[had] been so broken into by isolated bodies of settlement that there [could] hardly be said to be a frontier line (Dulles 1959, 51)." With this statement the frontier was officially closed.

Though the railroads had contributed greatly to the progress of the nation, they also contributed to the development of many problems. Unfortunately, railroads were exploited by their owners for personal profit. These owners saw that the farmers were dependent on railroads to make a living; without railroads the farmers would have been powerless to get their crops to market. There was usually only one railroad within wagon distance of a farm so that whatever price it charged ,the farmer was forced to pay. These prices usually did not change even if the price of grain went down, and as a result, farmers made less and less money (Furnas 1969, 797). From the farmers' point of view, industry had not advanced the nation but made it greedy and selfish. It was increasingly difficult for farmers to make a living, and so they were ready to join "any panacea no matter how far fetched" it seemed to bring the nation away from the evils of industry (Beals 1968, 4). These farmers banned together in organizations designed to fight control by industry.

Reactions to Industrial Society

The most prominent organization of farmers was the Grange. The members of the Grange wanted to petition the government for regulation of railroad rates. Farmers rallied around the movement so that by 1875 the more than 2,500,000 Grangers had elected many of their members to public office where they were able to push through legislation that set limits on railroad charges (Beals 1968, 68). The Grangers also attempted to boycott railroad and industrial control by owning their own grain elevators, manufacturing their own farm machinery and even sewing machines (Furnas 1969, 798). Through these efforts, they hoped to put control back in the hands of the farmers and give them a fair chance at earning a living. Despite the enthusiasm for the movement, its power did not last long and by the middle of the 1880s the influence of the organization had died out. This was due in part to internal management conflicts, but also was the result of continued railroad pressure which eventually convinced the supreme courts of many states to overturn railroad regulation acts which put the farmers right back where they had started (Beals 1968, 71).

Another rural movement against industry control was Populism. Populism sought to bring about governmental reform founded on the basic rights of man. They desired to take government control from the wealthy and give it to the people to give them a chance to earn a comfortable living. The means for this action was public control of utilities and transportation and direct issue of money by the government based on a silver standard (Clanton 1991, 167). Farmers longed for this new silver standard because it would lower the value of money and, thereby, lessen the value of their debts to the business world. This new silver standard would also decrease the wealth and power of business leaders whose income was based on a gold standard (Furnas 1969, 799). Though it consisted largely of rural farmers, there was some degree of social diversity in the movement. Some industrial workers belonged to the Populist movement because it supported the rights of labor to organize and fight against unfair working conditions (Clanton 1990, 135). Populism had a large following and even had several presidential candidates. However, the movement never gained enough influence to achieve real governmental reform.

Despite these efforts against industrialization, the face of the nation had transformed radically during the nineteenth century. There was no longer a frontier to settle and conquer. In fact, people in ever larger numbers were moving off of their unsuccessful farms and into the new opportunities for wealth provided by the city. The new growth and prosperity of the nation was centered around the city and its industries. The days of the open plain were over and new frontiers began to be explored. "The new frontier[s] [were] the machine, science, [and] technology... (Beals 1968, 3)." Yet, these new frontiers brought with them the many unattractive aspects of an industrializing city. As a result, many people began to retreat back to the countryside where prosperity and beauty were bountiful. This retreat ended in the establishment of many suburban communities such as Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.

Chapter 2 top
Cities in the "Gilded Age"

It was the city dweller whose manner of living was chiefly affected during the 1880s and 1890s. In the hectic changes that characterized the city, life became so colorful, so variegated, and, withal, so artificial, that it has been fittingly termed 'the gilded age' (Faulkner 1944, 471).

The source of the nation's wealth in the last decade of the nineteenth century was the industrial city. This wealth was shared by the upper-class industrialists and middle-class businessmen, but the common laborer received little benefit from it. The upper-classes of society indulged in their new wealth and created the appearance of an extremely successful nation. This promise of American prosperity attracted more and more immigrants from Europe.

These immigrants went to work in the factories and the surplus labor allowed businesses to pay workers very low wages. As a result, a large part of the population sunk into poverty and crowded into rundown sections of the city. The new labor force displaced many of the more highly paid workers. These displaced workers banned together against industry and formed unions to organize strikes against industries that cut wages or provided unsafe working conditions. These strikes were often violent and this added to the increasingly unpleasant aspects of city life. Factory pollution, increased traffic and swelling populations were making cites dirty and hot.

Despite attempts by local governments to beautify their cities, many people began to take advantage of progress in railroad technology which allowed them to commute relatively cheaply and comfortably to the city from a home several miles out in the country. The country life gave these people the opportunity to escape and ignore all of the harsh conditions of their time and focus only on the appearance of prosperity they had created. They lived in a truly "Gilded Age".

The "Gilt"

Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner were the first to use the term "Gilded Age" in their co-authored, satirical novel of American life, The Gilded Age, written in 1873 (Faulkner 1944, 477). Twain and Warner used this term to point out that the seeming prosperity of the day was only a thin veneer. From this perspective, the late nineteenth century was filled with a great deal of poverty and desolation; to all outward appearances, they were beautiful, filled with every variety of entertainment, and even seemed to offer opportunity to all.

The "Gilded Age" is generally defined as the period from the end of the Civil War through the turn of the century. There was a great deal of new scientific development during this time period that led to improvements in the every day life of most people adding to the outward appearance of prosperity and well-being. City dwellers were able to enjoy the luxury provided by incandescent light bulbs, improved plumbing, gas stoves, washing machines, packaged cereal, canned foods and even egg beaters (Dulles 1959, 91). The United States Patent Office granted over 400,000 patents between 1860 and 1890 "in every field, in every industry, in every trade (Russell 1973, 134)." These new inventions gave Americans who could afford to purchase them more leisure time. The better light provided by electricity, as opposed to candles, gave people more hours of light to accomplish their tasks and even provided several extra hours of personal time. Cooking was also less time consuming since food could now be prepackaged and cooked over a safe, reliable gas stove. The use of these new gadgets and inventions added to the appearance of prosperity at this time because they suddenly lessened the burdens of each individual.

New leisure time led to new forms of entertainment. Social clubs were one outlet for this personal time. There was a club for nearly every group in society from the manufacturers' club to the womens' club to the German club (Wolf 1990, 254). For the very rich, these clubs became more than just social gathering places. These people formed clubs in the country with spacious lawns for the enjoyment of outdoor sports. There were many new outdoor sports to be enjoyed, including golf, baseball, tennis and lacrosse (Furnas 1969, 813) Some of these sports were also able to be enjoyed by the less affluent members of society in the form of spectator sports. Though these people could not afford to join the country clubs and participate in sports themselves, they could release their pent up energies that had been bred by "sedentary" city life through cheering on others. (Claitor, 1990, 172). Perhaps the most widespread new sports craze was bicycling. Bicycles began as a toy of the wealthy, but soon new manufacturing techniques made them cheaper to produce, and so affordable to the masses. Bicycles were viewed as not only a good form of exercise, but as a practical way to get to work (Furnas 1969, 812). These new amusements contributed to the "gilt" of the age because they allowed people to be happy and enjoy themselves and forget about the problems of their nation.

Another way that people spent their new leisure time was in preparing and attending the many large scale celebrations of the age. Philadelphia had grand festivities to commemorate the centennial of the Declaration of Independence in 1876, the centennial of the Constitution in 1887 and the bicentennial of the city in 1882 (Wolf 1990, 241). Chicago, however, outdid all of these celebrations with its World Columbian Exhibition of 1893 which celebrated the four-hundredth anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the New World. Chicago built its famous "White City" for this occasion. This was a section of the city containing buildings constructed in neoclassical style from white marble adorned by numerous columns and statues (Furnas 1969, 763). These and other celebrations also contributed to the nation's appearance of prosperity by displaying its wealth and culture .

These were not the only grandiose exhibitions of wealth at the time. The architectural style of the day was turning to elaborate revivals of classical forms. Architects like John Carrere and Thomas Hastings who were "trained in the grandiloquent pseudo-classicisms" were among the most popular builders of the day (Furnas 1969, 787). Carrere and Hastings used their talents to construct the New York Public Library, Arlington, Virginia's Memorial Theater and a string of Florida resort hotels.4 These flamboyant architectural styles contributed to the display of success and prosperity that characterized the "Gilded Age".

It was not only the outside of the buildings, but the inside that was a conspicuous display of economic status. Homes were filled with "Victorian clutter" which consisted, in part, of picture albums, china dogs, painted pillows, porcelain figurines, painted plates and brass candle holders (Blay 1960, 24). These rooms appeared heavy and dark because they contained elegantly carved and upholstered furniture closed in by large, thick curtains (Faulkner 1944, 472). These rooms were thought to be the epitome of good taste, permanence and prosperity to the people of this age (Claitor 1990, 116). Apparently, the more objects and materials that could be brought together into one space the better. This ornate style carried over even into ladies fashions which consisted of voluminous skirts, thick jackets and heavy jewelry (Wolf 1990, 256). The styles of the day followed the general appearances and displays of wealth.

Clearly, the nation as a whole appeared to be thriving during the "Gilded Age". The signs of success were everywhere. However, as will be shown, the lower-class shared in only a small part of this prosperity. While the upper-class industrialists had incomes of between fifteen and thirty million dollars annually, the lower-class laborers earned only between three and five-hundred dollars per year. (Baltzell 1964, 110). This upper-class provided the most ostentatious display of prosperity but also offered the greatest hope for economic success because so many of them had built themselves up from working-class backgrounds. The men of this upper-class became known as the Robber Barons.

The Robber Barons

The Robber Barons were a group of wealthy industrialists who made their fortunes during the "Gilded Age". They were involved in many different industries, some new and some old, but all enhanced by the technological advances of the Industrial Revolution. Some industries that proved profitable included railroads, steel and oil (Dulles 1959, 54). These industries were an integral part of the nations new economy. Railroads brought goods to everyone from everywhere and so were in high demand. Steel was the material out of which new buildings and equipment were made, and oil was the fuel for all of this new machinery.

Men like Andrew Carnegie and John Rockefeller, who were poor immigrants, saw the potential of these industries and managed to get involved with them from their earliest beginnings (Furnas 1969, 163). The Robber Barons were able to invest in these industries before their value was realized. As these industries increased in importance, their investors' fortunes and power increased. These men became a model for the poor; they had started from nothing and worked their way to the top. The Robber Barons had realized the promise of American opportunity.

The Robber Barons did believe in returning some of this wealth to the nation from which it had come. They contributed large sums to higher education and many colleges and universities were founded that now bear their names such as the (Joseph) Wharton Business School of the University of Pennsylvania or (Andrew) Carnegie-Mellon University. Andrew Carnegie also established many libraries for public use and education (Faulkner 1944, 474). Most of the Robber Barons were also churchmen and used their fortunes for the maintenance and development of their sects. John D. Rockefeller believed that his money was "a gift of God" and so it was his duty to use this money for God's will (Josephson, 1932, 325).

The Advent Society was fortunate enough to have one of these wealthy industrialists in its congregation. John Pitcairn and his family emigrated form Scotland when he was a young child. When they came to America 1846, the Pitcairns joined the New Church and John was baptized into the faith (Gladish 1989, 3). The Pitcairn family was not wealthy but John was able to use his earnings to invest in the oil and plate glass industries. He became a very wealthy man, on par with the Robber Barons. Pitcairn also believed in using his money for the advancement of his religion. He donated the greater portion of the funds that were used to endow the Academy of the New Church and also paid for the relocation of this school to the Bryn Athyn settlement (Journal July 23, 1891). However, unlike many other industrialists of the day, Pitcairn was well known for his scrupulous business practices (Gladish 1989, 1).

Most of the Robber Barons turned to manipulative business practices in order to secure their success. They did this by reducing competition through combining their industries to control most markets. In the face of such powerful companies that could offer customers whatever services they required, small business could not compete. Thus, the models of opportunity were doing all that they could to keep themselves in power, which limited the opportunities of others. The Robber Barons held exclusive control over trade in certain markets for decades before legislation was passed that curtailed their power. In the meantime, these men remained at the top of their fields, controlling the economy of the nation.

Despite this success, these men were not immediately accepted into the higher social strata of society. The older money of the nation, people who had inherited their fortunes from a long line of wealthy ancestors, felt that the newly rich industrialists were uncultured and unworthy of social acceptance. The Robber Barons combated this snub by creating their own social life which consisted largely of proving how wonderful and well-off they were. Huge gala balls, decorated as elaborately as possible, were thrown nearly every week. On one occasion, the room was filled with exotic songbirds and swans floated on a lake in the center of it all (Dulles 1959, 92). There were many similar displays, for instance, as Matthew Josephson relates:

At one [dinner], each lady present, opening her napkin, found a gold bracelet with the monogram of the host. At another, cigarettes rolled in one-hundred dollar bills were passed around after the coffee and consumed with an authentic thrill... (Josephson, 1932, 338).

Another way for the Robber Barons to display their wealth and ensure their status and stability was to build large homes and buy country estates (Jackson 1985, 88). These mansions followed the neoclassical styles of the day and were constructed in a retrospective French style, in Tudoristic half timber, or from marble and Bedford stone (Furnas 1969, 772).5 Many of these large mansions still stand today as a reminder of this ostentatious age. This lavish display of wealth was what the "Gilded Age" was all about: the external appearance of prosperity. Eventually, these nouveau riche industrialist families became the old money and were, of course, accepted by high society (Baltzell 1971, 109-124). Thus, the need to display wealth as proof of status was alleviated.

In sharp contrast to this luxury was the state of the industrial worker. The wretched conditions in which these people lived were due, in large part, to the industrialist himself. Industrialists were out to make money and they saw the opportunity to do that through paying their labor low wages. This forced many families to put their children to work in order to have enough money to survive (Claitor 1990, 132). Under these conditions, there was little chance for economic advancement and the dream of rising from the bottom of society was not often realized. The Robber Barons seemed to have no sympathy for the poor roots from which they had come. Matthew Josephson summed up the Robber Barons' attitude toward their workers as follows.

Little heed was paid for the quarters in which workers and their families resided, the food they ate or the water they drank. (Josephson 1932, 363)

Essentially, the workers were left to fend for themselves in all matters of health and safety. If this meant that many of them died from crime and disease, the Robber Barons took no responsibility.

The Immigrants

The industrial work force was made up largely of immigrants who had come to America in huge waves during the late nineteenth century. Many came with nothing on which to live and would take any job, no matter how low paying, in order to survive. The situation only got worse as machines took over more of the workers' tasks and performed them faster than a worker ever could. This gave the industrialists an excuse to lower wages even further, and large portions of the population sank into poverty. The desolate situation made the apparent prosperity seem nothing more than a thin covering over a large sink hole.

The more immigrants that arrived, the more desperate the problem became. Between 1880 and 1920, 23,500,000 immigrants entered the United States, a figure double the size of the previous forty years (Claitor 1990, 54). These immigrants were of different ethnic origins than previous immigrants had been. Prior to 1880 most immigrants had come from northern Europe; after 1880 people started to come to America from eastern and southern Europe as well (Furnas, 1959, 835). The Industrial Revolution had made it easier for these new immigrants to travel to America because of improved transportation. Trains now ran into the interiors of the nations of Europe making it much faster and simpler for people to reach a sea port (Claitor 1990, 54).

But why did so many come? The answer is that America offered prosperity and freedom to these people. In their own lands, this well- being did not seem possible. In fact, there were many things that threatened their well-being, such as religious persecution, compulsory military service, famine and poverty (Blay 1960, 227). America seemed to have none of these problems and many people desired to leave their homelands for the hope of freedom and prosperity. Some immigrants, particularly the Italians, wanted to bring a portion of this wealth back to there own countries. These people went to America in their youth but always planned on returning to their own land after they had earned enough money to live on in their own country (Furnas 1969, 837). However, this hope of prosperity did not yield all that was promised. Immigrants did often find conditions that were better than what they had endured in their homelands but they still lived below the poverty level.

Immigrants could afford nothing more than the barest subsistence housing and they often crowded two or three families into one family spaces. For the the most part they made their homes in tenements which were small buildings that Foster Dulles describes as:

...closely packed together, five or six stories high, with little light and less ventilation. Plumbing facilities were primitive. The rooms were small, halls and stairways always dark and fire was a constant danger (Dulles 1959, 93).

Employers did nothing to alleviate these conditions. In fact, some of these tenements were company owned, such as Steel Baron Andrew Carnegie's "Painter's Row" in Pittsburgh. This section of town, as described by Matthew Josephson, consisted of:

...five hundred people living in back to back houses without ventilation, having cellar kitchens, dark, overcrowded sleeping quarters, no drinking water whatsoever, and no sanitary accommodations worth the name (Josephson 1932, 363).

It is no wonder that these slums were constantly the sight of epidemic diseases. Typhoid, scarlet fever, cholera, small pox and tuberculosis were among the most prominent (Blay 1960, 34). Clearly, these immigrants were not a part of the "gilt" of happiness and prosperity that characterized this age.

Nevertheless, even these horrible conditions were better than some of the slums of the European countries, and so the immigrants kept coming. In the old countries, cities were centuries older than in America. These ancient cities did not adapt well to the modern conveniences. Many people lived in hovels with no plumbing or electricity along streets that were piled high with garbage and waste. Others did not live in cities at all but struggled to survive on infertile farms with no hope of rising out of their life of sweat and toil (Furnas 1969, 836). They came to America for the dream of something better and, to them, what they found was an improvement even though it was not perfect.

Immigrants were not only kept out of the economic prosperity of the day, but they were also socially ostracized. There were a variety of reasons for this. One reason was because the new immigrants had a different language and culture than the Americans, unlike many earlier northern European immigrants (Claitor 1990, 54). As a consequence, it was difficult for them to blend naturally into their new society. Instead, they clung together for safety in small enclaves of their home culture, such as the Italian section of South Philadelphia or the Jewish section of New York City (Furnas 1969, 836). Another reason for the social ostracism was the fact that most of the new immigrants were Catholic or Jewish. There had been a strong resistance to these religions in America since its earliest settlement (Furnas 1969, 837).

Immigrants were also socially ostracized because they were willing to accept the low wages that industrialists offered them. Native-born American laborers had been asking for higher wages and better working conditions for decades, but the immigrants came along and undermined this whole effort through their willingness to work for low wages. Native-born workers felt betrayed by the immigrants and so would not accept them socially. Added to this was the fact that these native-born workers often lost their jobs to cheap immigrant labor. As a result of this threat to their livelihood, labor began to organize led by the second generation Americans whose parents had emigrated from northern Europe and England (Furnas 1969, 838). Violent strikes began to ravage and shock the nation.

Labor Unions

During the 1870s, laborers became aware of the deplorable conditions in which they were being asked to work. To counter this, they joined together in unions, such as the Knights of Labor, which were organizations designed to bring grievances to the attention of employers. When employers would not heed their calls for reform, these organizations arranged for the workers to strike. This meant that the workers would refuse to work until the employer complied with their demands or agreed to a reasonable compromise.

In 1877, such a strike broke out in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania against the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad because the company had recently cut wages but at the same time made their employees run double the amount of cars on freight trains (Josephson 1934, 365). The strike turned violent, and the fighting and vandalism caused five million dollars worth of damage. Eventually, the local militia had to be called out to put an end to the frenzy. These workers were not successful in getting the company to raise their wage and eventually returned to work out of economic necessity.

However, this strike did alert workers nationwide to the possibility of fighting back against their oppressive employers. The Knights of Labor union, which had organized the strike, added many new members to its ranks after it was over, and this gave the organization greater power. As a result, in 1885, the Knights of Labor led three separate strikes against railroads through five different states. During one of these strikes, in St. Louis, Missouri, the local military again had to be called out to quell the violence (Blay 1960, 182). The Knights of Labor did not achieve many great successes against industry, but they had succeeded in arousing national awareness about the miserable working conditions of the industrial laborer.

There were many other worker's unions that organized strikes in the 1880s. In 1885, there were a total of 645 strikes and this number increased to 1400 in 1886 (Blay 1960, 182). Strikes were becoming an increasing threat until 1886, when the famous Haymarket riot in Chicago sent the nation into a panic. The riot took place at a union rally in May of 1886. On May 3, the police had broken up a labor meeting rather brutally which put the unionists on the defensive. The police arrived again on May 4, which angered the people. There was a scuffle and a bomb was thrown (Sennet 1969, 389). Foreigners were blamed for the attack, even though this has never been proven, and unionists became identified as immigrants even though this accusation was, for the most part, untrue (Blay 1960, 185). When the news spread to the rest of the nation, there was a public outcry against labor unions which resulted in more violence and upheaval. After the Haymarket riot, the government attempted to curb the power of the new unions through injunctions that forbid worker to strike (Josephson 1932, 367). Despite these measures, unions continued to grow.

In 1892, there was a strike at Andrew Carnegie's steel plant in Homestead, Pennsylvania. A gun battle even broke out between the strikers and the strikebreakers requiring federal troops to step in and end the violence (Clanton 1991, 133). In 1893, the famous Pullman strike occurred in Illinois. Wages for the Pullman Train Car Company employees were cut, but rents on company owned houses did not follow suit. Railroad workers across the state joined the Pullman workers in their fight by refusing to operate any train containing a Pullman car. The entire north was paralyzed by this action because nearly all trains contained these cars (Claitor 1990, 133).

Union movements had affected the population of the entire nation adversely at one time or another. As a result, public opinion turned against unions and the problems that came with them. The more conservative elements of society saw the unions as a communistic threat that would destroy capitalism and private property (Gaustad 1983, 117). Others feared the violence that labor unions used to achieve their ends. Cities were becoming dangerous places and many people longed to escape from these conditions.

City Growth

There were many other reasons that the city was becoming an unpleasant place to live in the 1890s. Cities had become over crowded, dirty and polluted in the last few decades. This was the result of the rapid city growth experienced during the "Gilded Age". In the last two decades, the urban population of the United States doubled from 15,000,000 to 30,000,000 people (Dulles 1959, 89). The city of Philadelphia alone grew from 674, 000 to 1,047,000 from 1880 to 1890 (Paxson, 1932, 173). New urban populations sparked rapid building and expansion across the nation. In Philadelphia, the City Hall and the Reading Railroad terminal, to name only a few, were part of this building craze (Wolf 1990, 245). These new buildings were being built larger and more elaborately than ever. For the first time, skyscrapers began to appear in the skylines of American cities. These multi-storied buildings allowed more people to occupy one space of land and helped city populations to swell beyond their limits (Faulkner 1959, 37).

With this rapid expansion came many problems. The new utility and transportation companies found out how valuable their services were and capitalized on this situation. The owners of these companies tended to ally with each other and other money powers to control the government of their cities (Wolf 1990, 237). They had little sympathy for the urban poor and were interested mainly in how government could be manipulated for their own advantage. As a result, many city services went untended and conditions became worse for the average citizen. In fact, in the words of Harold Faulkner:

...streets went unpaved; garbage and sewage removal were left to accident and time; water supplies were allowed to become polluted; and conditions in slums rapidly sank to appalling levels of human degradation (Faulkner 1959, 22).

Even law enforcement officials were controlled by these new powers, which made it almost impossible for people to take legal action to change the situation (Faulkner 1959, 24).

Another problem was the general unhealthy climate of the city. As has been shown, the slums of the cities bred disease, but the city as a whole was an unhealthy place to live. The life expectancy of a city dweller was much lower than that of a person who lived in the country. It was even claimed that if there was not a continuous inflow of new inhabitants to the cities that they would have soon become depopulated due to the high death rate (Jackson 1985, 69).

In addition to this, the traffic congestion created by the new transportation systems made it unpleasant and even dangerous to get around in the city. The problem stemmed from the fact that there were several different transportation systems competing for the same street space: railroads, horse cars, trolleys and old fashioned horse and wagons.

There were more railroads than ever streaming into the cites as a result of improved technology. Steel cars had replaced wooden ones, and a new efficient hand braking system had been developed that made railroads safer and easier to control (Russell 1973, 140). There were also horse cars or omnibuses which consisted of a horse pulling a passenger car over rails (Jackson 1985, 39). Many of these horses were replaced by electric cables in the 1880s which were faster, cheaper and provided a smoother, more comfortable ride (Jackson 1985, 107). There were also interurbans which were trains that ran from the city to the surrounding towns on electric rails. These trains made the city much more accessible to the country dweller who journeyed into the city and added another body to the traffic congestion (Furnas 1969, 802).

These new transportation systems added to the problems of the city in other ways as well. Railroads, along with other industries, contributed a great deal of pollution to the cities as Kenneth Jackson relates:

Industry in the steam era when railroads offered the best method of shipping, tended to concentrate as close to the distribution points as possible. Smokestacks belched soot into the air of every city, and nearby sections soon turned to slums. No one with options wanted to live in close proximity to important railroad lines or to heavy industry (Jackson 1985, 69)

These things provide further explanation as to why, by the 1890s, "Americans were taking a good hard look at the emerging metropolises and they did not like what they saw (Claitor 1990, 152)." The problems of the city seemed so overwhelming that people began to leave them for the peaceful beauty of the countryside. With this, the first large scale suburbanization movement in the United States began.

Suburbanization

As more people crowded together in public spaces, families sought to protect home life by building private spaces, conviviality and group interaction, despite the massive growth of fraternal societies in the late nineteenth century, gave way to new ways of thinking about the family, the house and the yard, and, ultimately, to new ways of building cities (Jackson 1985, 47)

These new ways of building cites involved the layout of suburbs. Nineteenth century cities had not provided for these areas but Americans gradually created their own. At first, city governments, who did not want to lose constituents, attempted to make cities more attractive and livable. The centennial exhibition in Philadelphia and the Colombian Exposition in Chicago provided excellent opportunities for these cites to revitalize themselves. Chicago's White City provided its inhabitants a pleasant environment with gardens and parks in which to relax and enjoy themselves (Claitor 1990, 152). Philadelphia also built many new buildings for its public to admire and use in their daily life (Wolf 1990, 246). Many city governments attempted to keep cities pleasant and attractive through annexing unused land. Parks were built on this land or it was left open to alleviate congestion (Gottdiener 1977, 21). Despite these efforts, cities became more and more crowded until there was scarcely any space left between the buildings (Wolf 1990, 250). Beautification efforts had failed. Those who could afford to began to build their homes in the country, away from the unattractive aspects of the city but close enough to commute to their places of business.

In Philadelphia, for example, as early as the 1860s, the wealthy began to abandon their large downtown mansions for the wider avenues and larger front porches of Germantown, Frankford and Chestnut Hill (Wolf 1990, 250). Downtown locations were no longer as pleasant as the unpolluted air and uncrowded streets on the edge of town (Baltzell 1964, 121). As transportation improved, in the 1870s and 1880s, Philadelphians were able to move even further from the center of town out the main railroad line leading west. They settled in the communities of Ardmore, Media and others now known as the "Main Line" (Jackson 1985, 9). However, the coat of commuting to work from the suburbs was still quite high, $35-$150 per year (Jackson 1985, 101). As a consequence, suburban populations consisted mainly of the upper-class members of society.

These wealthy people constructed idyllic environments for their new homes. Throughout the country, there were dozens of park style developments with cobble stone streets and picturesque windy avenues closed in by stone walls and iron gates to promote their exclusiveness (Furnas 1969, 818). The first of these communities was "Stewart's Folly" or Garden City, New York, founded in 1869 by A.T. Stewart. At first, the community was unsuccessful, but then a country club with a golf course and tennis courts was added and the town thrived (Furnas 1969, 818). These new communities were to be year round residences, not just summer resorts which had previously been built on the country estates of the wealthy (Baltzell 1964, 117).

Thus began the mass exodus from the overbearing city, an exodus of which Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania became a part. The country life offered escape and freedom from the varied problems of the city. In the words of Kenneth Jackson:

...suburbia, pure and unfettered and bathed by sunlight and fresh air, offered the exiting prospect that disorder, prostitution and mayhem could be kept at a distance, far away in the festering metropolis (Jackson 1985, 70)

This is the suburbia that Americans started to desire in the late nineteenth century. Through acting on this ideal they could effectively turn their backs on the ambiguities inherent in the lifestyle of the "Gilded Age". The perfect American life began to be viewed as the quiet suburban lifestyle of privacy and purity.

Chapter 3 top
Religion in the "Gilded Age"

After the Civil War, America, a nation where religion had always played an important role in defining society, was thrust into a new era of urban civilization. In this environment, the place and future of religion were no longer self-evident. This crisis was felt across the protestant denominations whose strength was found in rural America. This crisis affected the New Church as well. As the forces of secularization became more apparent, a desire arose among the members of the Advent Society to found a religious Academy where the place of religion in all aspects of life would be made evident. To maintain the purity and integrity of this religious Academy, the decision was made to found a New Church community.

Before the Civil war, the New Church had been a relatively loosely structured organization. Various locations of the Church had taken leadership at different times but on the whole, the organization of the New Church differed little from the rest of protestant America. After the War, when religion began to lose some of its cultural authority, a certain faction within the New Church desired to create a stronger institution to protect their religious heritage. The Academy movement came into being as a result of this initiative. It stressed education as the key to remaining strong in faith and fighting against the religious crisis of the age. A New Church organization was established which emphasized authority from God through the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.

The New Church was not the only denomination to react to the changing state of society. Before the Civil war, religion had a large impact in defining the social and cultural institutions of the nation. The predominantly rural nation had a strong belief in God and His providence and this guided them in their everyday lives. The Civil War shook the faith of many, because religion did not seem to provide an answer to this disastrous situation. The new industrial society which emerged after the war emphasized wealth and status. There was little place for traditional faith in this society because it offered no answers to the new moral and ethical dilemmas of industrial society. The inadequacy of traditional Christianity to fulfill the religious, moral and spiritual needs of industrial society led to questions concerning its value and place in the nation.

Some reacted to this crisis by completely turning away from religion and found in science the keys to the purpose and order of society. In a scientific world, God was no longer necessary. Another segment of society, known as religious liberals, tried to incorporate science into their religious beliefs. Science often appeared to be in direct opposition to religious positions, but liberals adapted traditional conceptions of God to fit these scientific ideas. Others tried to reach beyond the scope of older conceptions of religion through aid to the poor and helpless. These people founded the movement known as the Social Gospel. Still others tried to increase the authority of religion in the face of the crisis. This manifested itself in religious revivals, dramatic, powerful sermons and also through the denial of the scientific discoveries of the age in favor of the Bible's literal interpretation of the world and its creation. Many religious academies were founded by zealous Christians during this period. They hoped these academies would keep their young from being drawn into the spiritual crisis by instructing them in the truths of religion. Education in general experienced great growth during the last decades of the nineteenth century because its potential to mold young minds in ways beyond basic instruction in the three "Rs" was realized. The New Church was a part of this culture and as such was effected by it. Both the founding of the Academy and the move to Bryn Athyn fit the pattern of the broader cultural response to the secularization of American society.

The Breakdown of Faith

Catherine Albanese points out that the title "Gilded Age" was also appropriate for the religious climate of the day because "beneath the glittering surface of society there was a sense of spiritual malaise (Albanese 1981, 101)." The acceptance of new scientific knowledge contributed to this "malaise" because science had challenged the traditional conception of God and the authority of the Bible. The result was that a lot of people stopped coming to church. Many also left the Church because the God that was being promoted was a fearful and vengeful God. This God offered little sympathy and comfort in the modern age and so, many left the established Church in search of something more uplifting (Carpenter 1971, 46). Another factor in the weakening of the Church was the factionalism which resulted from the Civil War. During this conflict, each of the major churches was split into northern and southern divisions and the strength of each diminished organization was thereby weakened (Ahlstrom 1972, 733). Francis Weisenburger includes these factors in his analysis of why people began to turn away from the established Christian Churches in the "Gilded Age". He also includes several other reasons, such as the hypocritical lifestyles of the supposed God fearing men in the Church, the fact that sermons were just plain dull, and the fact that people had to strictly observe the Sabbath to the point where children were not even allowed to play outside on this day (Weisenburger 1959, 40-46). What all of these ideas point to is that people were reexamining what the church organizations had to offer and saw that it was very lacking. Religion offered them no comfort nor enjoyment nor compensation for the suffering they had endured during the Civil War. Instead, Americans indulged in the new pleasures of the day. Going to a baseball game or to the theater proved to be a much more enjoyable experience than sitting still in a hard wooden pew, listening to a sermon which seemed to say that everyone, including themselves, was going to hell because they were so sinful (Weisenburger, 1959, 46). These attitudes encouraged the secularization of society.

The Impact of Scholarship

Science was a major factor in this secularization. Martin Marty summed up the idea quite well when he said that by the 1890s, "Science had dissipated into myth or legend much of what once seemed substantial reality (Marty 1986, 30)." With many ideas cast into doubt, it is little wonder that people began to leave the Church and turn to the substantial proofs of science to find true nature of reality.

Geology was one of the new sciences that questioned the integrity of the Bible. Geologists had discovered a fossil record that pointed to a much older origin of the Earth than had been previously thought (Ahlstrom 1972, 766). This directly contradicted the Bible's evidence that the Earth was only about six thousand years old. If this new evidence was accepted, it appeared that a part of the Bible had to be rejected, and if one part of the Bible could be rejected as untrue, then other portions or perhaps the entire Bible might also be false. This idea led to further confusion concerning the place of religion in society.

Another scholarly pursuit that threatened to undermine religion in the nineteenth century was Biblical criticism. Basically, it was decided that the Bible could be analyzed and examined as any other work of literature (Ahlstrom 1972, 772). In Germany, in 1840, J.G. Palfrey hypothesized that the Bible was a compilation of at least two separate sources (Weisenburger 1959, 80). From this idea, other scholars followed until it was eventually thought that the Bible was made up of four separate sources put together by one compiler well after the days of Moses (Carpenter 1971, 39). This brought into question the Mosaic authorship of the first five books of the Bible. If Moses had not written these books under God's Divine Dictate, then what authority did they have?

It was also pointed out that many events of the Bible could never have occurred in the manner depicted. For example, in 1862, John Colenso pointed out that it would have been impossible for so many people to exist in the wilderness of Arabia for forty years (Weisenburger 1959, 81). In the late nineteenth century, Robert Ingersoll tried to bring these ideas to the common people through lectures and books where he pointed out such things as the impossibility of Joshua commanding the sun to stand still (Weisenburger 1959, 88).

Added to these scholarly pursuits was the theory of evolution. This theory, made famous by Charles Darwin, held that all creatures had evolved from a single cell. If this idea were accepted, the Bible's account of Creation had to be false. In fact, Darwinism took away any need for a deity at all since the laws of nature could keep the universe in balance (Weisenburger, 59, 63). This idea was repugnant to many since it implied that humans and animals were equals in the eyes of nature (Carpenter 1971, 50).

As a result, there were many who refuted Darwin's ideas. At first, Darwinism was rejected on a purely scientific basis which held that no concrete evidence had been produced to substantiate Darwin's theories. Particularly absent was the fossil evidence for the missing links between species (Weisenburger 1959, 63). Later, Darwinism was rejected on a purely religious basis because his ideas were thought to be atheistic and contrived for no other purpose than to disprove the existence of God.

There were ministers who tried to incorporate Darwin's ideas into their religion (Marty 1986, 35). These ministers felt that evolution was God's method of advancing his creation. Acceptance of these new scientific ideas was known as "liberal" theology.

Liberalism

"The task, as Liberalism, or in its more extreme form, Modernism, saw it, was to reconcile the Christian Gospel to the modern world (Albanese 1981, 103)." The world was changing rapidly during the "Gilded Age" and something was needed to bridge the gap between the old, puritanical culture and the industrial age. Liberal theology set out to accomplish this through updating God to modern needs. "The liberal theologian's God was a God of love - intimate, imminent, and concerned about human welfare (McDannell 1986, 18)." This God was not only loving, He was a part of nature and its laws. This incorporated all the ideas of science into a conception of God, making Him truly a part of the modern era.

Liberalism did not in itself encourage any real solution to the moral problems of the age; it only explained the nature of reality. In fact, many liberals ignored the plight of the poor because they were content with their own station and place in the world. "...Liberalism often encouraged complacency and self-satisfaction. It throve mightily among the most conservative classes of people (Ahlstrom 1972, 788)." There were extreme branches of the liberal movement. "Modernists" wanted to use the new theology to accept and embrace all religions. They believed that each religion had something valuable to contribute and could be brought into harmony under a universal theology. The Modernists' ideas eventually culminated in the World Parliament of Religions, in 1893, which was designed as a forum for all religions to share their beliefs with one another (Marty 1986, 17).

Interestingly, one of the organizers of this event was a New Churchman named Charles Bonney. Though Bonney did not belong to the Advent Society, they also both shared some of the Modernists' views about the spread of religion. The members of the Advent Society believed that it was important to share their religion with the entire globe. The establishment of New Church societies in the Asian lands was met with much excitement and celebration during this era (Schreck 1891, 64).

In addition to the Modernists, there was another extreme branch of liberalism which emphasized ethics and morality and believed that bringing the "Kingdom of God" on earth was possible if people would work together to raise others out of poverty and desolation (Albanese 1981, 106). This branch eventually became its own movement known as the Social Gospel.

The Social Gospel

People of the Social Gospel movement saw the effect of modern city life on some Americans and felt it was their Christian duty to change it. These people saw the importance that lay in the fate of the city:

The city was the site of the emerging civilization. Its fate would determine the fate of the nation and the world. Its styles and contours would shape the intellect, culture and morality of the twentieth century. To evade the problems of the new urbanism was to be disengaged from the future (White 1976, 56).

Raising the economic status of the poor was vital to the future of the entire nation because if one segment of society lived in such a wretched state, then the society as a whole was made worse (Paxson 1932, 174). To change this situation, people who followed the Social Gospel focused not on the hereafter but on the here and now (Faulkner 1959, 29). The Bible dealt mainly with the after world and how to achieve salvation, however:

The ideas of the Social Gospel were based on the conviction that the saving of society was useless without a parallel effort to Christianize the urban environment (Baltzell 1964, 161).

This movement did attempt to bring Christianity and its dream of salvation to the urban poor, but, the Bible was not written in the industrial age and so did not have the answers to the moral problems of capitalistic society. "[The people of the Social Gospel movement] made their own answer, they acted (Albanese 1981, 102)."

Proponents of the Social Gospel brought aid to the oppressed workers and supported them in their effort against labor. The young, the indigent, and the insane were now to be taken care of thanks to a "dawning social conscience" (Blay 1969, 47). The means for performing this use included charitable organizations such as the the Salvation Army and the Young Mens' Christian Association (YMCA). Settlement houses were another means to bring aid to the oppressed.

Settlement houses were basically community centers. Hull House, founded by Jane Adams and Julia Lathrop in Chicago, was one of the most prominent (Dulles 1959, 97). These centers had nurseries for working parents, social clubs, reading rooms, gymnasiums and other recreational activities. By 1895, the activities included kindergartens, employment bureaus and even arts and crafts classes (Faulkner 1959, 29). The idea behind settlement houses was to provide an area where workers could relax and raise themselves above their impoverished lifestyles. Settlement houses also performed a use by bringing national attention to the workers plight through publicity and government commissioned sociological studies (Faulkner 1959, 30).

One of the main figures in the Social Gospel story was Washington Gladden. Gladden began preaching "social conscience" from his pulpit in the 1880s. He told people that they could change the world if only they would try (Albanese 1981, 106). He advocated, in his "Applied Christianity", such socially advanced practices as progressive taxation and government owned transportation (Carpenter 1971, 194). Gladden, and other preachers, helped spread the ideas of the Social Gospel to the masses. Reverend Charles Sheldon even wrote a novel, In His Steps, about a tramp to bring readers' attention to the plight of the poor (White 1976, 143).

Religion and organized churches were the center for this charitable activity. However, some people became so involved with the idea of charity and social reform that they tuned away from organized religion. The Social Gospel advocated a way of life that they felt was good and so it provided the basis for their new belief system (Weisenburger 1959, 121).

Social Darwinism

There were many who did not follow the Social Gospel and, in fact, believed it to be harmful. These people were advocates of the principle of Social Darwinism. Basically, this theory held that Darwin's idea of "survival of the fittest" could be applied socially and economically (Weisenburger 1959, 117). The poor were destined to their position because they were weak while the industrialists were strong. "Social Darwinism seemed a made-to-order philosophy for the rising capitalists in the postwar period; it glorified laissez faire, whether the result was unbridled competition or consolidation (Faulkner 1959, 14)."

Social Darwinists were interested in the Gospel of Wealth proposed by such men as Russell Conwell. Conwell promoted the idea that "...the sky was the limit, ...and humans could achieve anything they genuinely chose (Albanese 1981, 102)." This Gospel encouraged worldly gain and prosperity which probably added to the materialism and secularization of the age.

The wealthy Social Darwinists also effected the church through their exodus to the countryside. As more people left the city, their churches went with them. "The people who could afford churches were well churched; those who could not were unchurched - and hardly cared or even regarded church people as their economic oppressors (Ahlstrom 1972, 738)." The wealthy churches moved to the outskirts of the city and downtown workers were left with rundown buildings or no churches at all (Weisenburger 1959, 42). Once again, the church was not able to meet the needs of the masses.

Attempts to Revive Religion

Some Churches reacted to the crisis of faith by attempting to send their message more powerfully to the people. The Churches of the nation all had different systems of belief, but they shared a core of universal doctrine. This doctrine mainly revolved around the reality of original sin and the fact that every human being could struggle against this barrier to attain salvation (Weisenburger 1959, 2). Evangelical preachers traversed the nation spreading this message to all through religious revivals. These revivals consisted of a series of prayer meetings and sermons that culminated in the conversion of many audience members who were overcome by the weight of their sins and desired to become part of the heavenly life the preachers had promised (Blay 1960, 45). These converts were encouraged to join a church organization. Which domination they chose was not important as long as it offered continued support to their new found faith and kept them from slipping back into their former sins. This revivalism was helpful to many individuals, but it did nothing to offer solutions to the new moral dilemmas brought on by the industrial age, such as the plight of labor (Ahlstrom 1972, 743). All revivalism offered was a chance to be redeemed in the next life. It did not provide any strategies for dealing with the day to day problems of life on this earth.

Another "gilded" aspect of religion at this time was the great preacher phenomenon. Henry Ward Beecher of Brooklyn was famous throughout the country for his sermons on social and political ills. Phillips Brooks of Boston was equally famous for his idea that the entire world was part of the family of God (Ahlstrom 1972, 739). However, Beecher's belief in political and social reform was inconsistent as he attempted to appeal to all segments of society, both liberal and conservative (Carpenter 1971, 125). Since he advocated opposing strategies, Beecher offered no tangible solution to the moral problems of the day. These great sermons were powerful, but they did not reach far enough into society to produce any real improvement in the crisis of religion.

Fundamentalism

"[Fundamentalism] was the second response of protestants to their changing world, that of partially withdrawing from it and rejecting it (Albanese 1981, 103)." Fundamentalists rejected the new ideas of science on the grounds that the Bible contained absolute truth:

Because the liberals favored dynamic and fluid views of history, the anti-progressives needed a stable and rigid superstructure. They found this in an assertion of the infallibility... of the canonical Bible (Marty 1986, 232).

Fundamentalists believed that to deny the historical facts of the Bible was to deny God himself because the Bible had been written by His Divine authority which could never be wrong. Fundamentalists sometimes explained the inconsistencies of the Bible as the the fault of the copyist or translators of the early documents, but they usually simply denied that the Bible was inconsistent at all (Weisenburger 1959, 82). The miraculous events which critics claimed could never have occurred were simply the work of God. The infallibility of the Bible answered Darwinian principles and geological findings by simply refuting them in favor of the explanations of creation found in the Bible. This was the way that the world was created because this was the way God said it was created.

Fundamentalists opposed liberal theology because it advocated changing God to fit the conceptions of the modern world:

The idea that the traditional creeds could be progressively overhauled and brought up to date was opposed to the very idea of Christianity as a system of objective truths and facts (Carpenter 1971, 164).

God was unchanging, stable and infinite. He could not be any other than he had originally been. Perhaps this stability offered the Fundamentalists the answer to the crisis which the changing age had brought.

Fundamentalists saw the denial of God and his authority as a sign of the evil and sin that polluted the world. The only answer to this crisis was to live a life free of sin and to preach cold, hard doctrine to all people to bring them out of their life of sin (Ahlstrom 1972, 808).

Education

One of the means of spreading this doctrine to the people was through religious education. Many religious denominations founded schools during the "Gilded Age" to help their members keep their faith in the face of modern society. The rise of religious education started with Sunday schools but soon led to more comprehensive instruction. In 1880, for example, the Methodist Church had 11 theological seminaries, 44 colleges and 130 women's seminaries (Finke 1992, 154). The idea that education could be used to help the young in dealing with their religious crisis may have come from an altered view of the value of education that came about during the "Gilded Age". The scope of education increased greatly during this period: from rudimentary instruction in reading, writing and arithmetic to include art and both physical and social science (Dulles 1959, 105). Courses in drawing, music and nature studies were taught for the first time (Faulkner 1944, 474).

This expanded curriculum became possible partly due to an increase in public funding for education (Blay 1960, 51). The school term was also lengthened and attendance was more strictly enforced (Faulkner 1944, 473). This new education was supported by most religions. Judaism supported the new educational system as long as it remained completely secular (Gaustad 983, 49). Catholics, however, wanted more religion in their childrens' lives. For this reason, they did not participate extensively in the new public school system of the Gilded Age but developed their their own parochial school system (Gaustad 1983, 39).

There were changes in higher education as well during this period. In order to keep on top of the new curriculum, teachers were forced to become better educated (Dulles 1959, 104). Ministers also had to be better educated if they wanted to speak on the same level as their newly educated parishioners (Finke 1992, 154). As a result, college presidents reexamined their systems and added more stringent diploma requirements (Blay 1960, 59). From Germany, the seminar and thesis were imported along with the doctoral degree (Faulkner 1959, 16). Elective systems were introduced that let people pursue courses of study focused in their own areas of interest (Dulles 1959, 119).

Many new schools were founded during this period of educational expansion. The total school population went from 7,000,000 to 15,000,000 from 1870 to 1900 (Dulles 1959, 104). The number of state supported colleges increased because the Mirril Act of 1862 was finally utilized which gave states land and money to found centers of higher learning (Dulles 1959, 105). Private schools were also increasing in number. In Philadelphia, between 1880 and 1900, Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore were founded and the University of Pennsylvania expanded to include the Dental and Wharton schools (Wolf 1990, 255). The suburbanization trend added to the number of day schools all over the country. In the Philadelphia area such schools as Haverford, Chestnut Hill and the Episcopal Academy were established (Baltzell 1971, 297).

The Academy of the New Church was part of this educational movement. It was founded along with other religious institutions in order to instruct youth in the doctrines of the Church and thereby keep them from becoming part of the spiritual "malaise" of the nation. The founders of the Academy believed that religious instruction was the key to the growth and expansion of the New Church. The youth of the New Church would be educated in the doctrines allowing them to see the Lord's truth. With this knowledge, they would be more likely to remain in the Church which could then grow and prosper from its own offspring. This belief in education as a means of protection and preservation was one response to the religious climate of the "Gilded Age" that the Advent Society shared with the Fundamentalists.

The Advent Society's belief in authority and morality was also shared with the Fundamentalists. The members of the Advent Society believed that modern science was corrupting the nation because it did not take religion into account in its theories and this diminished God's place in creation (Schreck 1890a, 66) The people of the Advent Society believed that God was the supreme force and the creator of the universe, and they received His Word through the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. This gave them the a strong foundation and authority for their faith which could not be shaken by the discoveries of science. The truths contained in the Writings provided guiding principles by which the people of the Advent Society could live their everyday lives and so escape the crisis of faith that plagued most of the nation.

However, the members of the Advent Society also shared characteristics with other religious movements of the age. They were encouraged by the growth of their religion in foreign nations and the hope of a universal religion which it promised. In this way, they were in sympathy with the Modernist interpretation of religion. The Advent Society also admired some of the attitudes of the Social Gospel since one of the central doctrines of the New Church was charity toward the neighbor. As a consequence, the Advent Society made its own efforts to care for the poor and oppressed by giving aid to New Church orphans and widows (Whitehead 1976, 46).

Despite these similarities, the reaction of the Advent Society to the changing religious climate was somewhat different than other segments of society. They believed that they were the exclusive possessors of God's truth. It would be impossible to share these truths with other Christian Churches, whose doctrines were based on falsities, because this mixture of truth and falsity would result in the collapse of all things of religion. As a result, the Advent Society believed that the New Church would expand and prosper from within. Religious education would enhance this growth. As time passed, the members of the Advent Society began to believe that a secluded religious community, safe from the corrupting influence and false doctrines of the "Old Church", was the best environment for religious education. Acting on this belief, they moved their community to the country site of Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.

Chapter 4 top
The New Church in the "Gilded Age"

The people of the Advent Society were, naturally, affected by the temper of the times. This environment provided the inspiration to found their own private, religious community. The motivations to establish this community stemmed from both practical and religious concerns. On the practical side, their concerns were similar to non-New Church members who sought peace from the new urban environment in the country lifestyle. They found cities hot, congested and unhealthy. Unlike other comforts of American society, the Advent Society members also found main stream city life to be too selfishly decadent and luxurious. The Advent Society reacted against this environment by seeking a more simple and genuine, honest lifestyle in the country.

While other religious groups shared this assessment, the members of the Advent Society also had concerns about the city that were unique to their religion. There were several doctrines contained in the Writings of Emmanuel Swedenborg which taught that the faith of the "Old Church" was corrupt and lifeless. Further passages from Swedenborg alluded to the idea that the New Church should separate itself from the former Christian Churches to avoid infestation by the dead faith of the "Old Church". This led members of the Advent Society to believe that separating themselves socially from the "Old Church" was necessary.

From this idea came the concept of "distinctive" New Church cultural institutions and social practices. These people needed something to replace the social life of the "Old Church" that was sanctioned by ideas from the Writings. Since the "Old Church" was so corrupt, the growth of the Church would have to come from within, through "distinctive" New Church education. Residing in an exclusive New Church society, away from the corruptions of the secular world, would give this education its greatest impact. This education was to be the chief use of the New Church community. The people would work together for a common goal, the spread of God's Church on earth and the preparation of its members for life in heaven. Thus, in reaction to the discomforts and corruptions of the "Gilded Age", the people of the Advent Society decided to found their own private, religious community.

Health

As has been shown, one of the major problems of urban life was the disease-ridden environment. With thousands of people packed into a few square miles it is little wonder that epidemics spread rapidly throughout the city. The new factories added to this problem by polluting the air with smoke and other industrial wastes. City air became thick and heavy. As a result, sickness became even more rampant. Fresh air was thought to be the answer to this problem. Therefore, doctors prescribed long trips away from the city for their ailing patients. The Advent Society members faithfully followed such medical advice. For example, in 1893, Bishop William F. Pendleton went on a bike tour through five states to cure his heath (Schreck June 1892b, 96). In 1892, Doctor George R. Starkey traveled to the country air of Georgia in an attempt to improve his health (Klein, January 1892, 1). Factories had not only made the city air unclean but their presence seemed to intensify the oppressive heat and humidity of the climate. Summers were so unbearable that many members of the Advent Society spent them on the beaches of New Jersey or on farms in the outskirts of Philadelphia. (Odhner, C. 1890, 132).

The idea of escaping these intolerable conditions first occurred to the people of the Advent Society in 1888, but no concrete plans were made (Journal July 23, 1891). In 1891, a meeting of the Academy of the New Church Council was held to discuss the feasibility of a move and possible locations for the new community. At this meeting, all attendants agreed that improved health was one of the main reasons to pursue the move (Journal July 23, 1891). The merits of various locations were discussed including the community's present site in what was then known as Huntingdon Valley. Later that year, after a professional investigation by a Doctor Kent, the climate of the Huntingdon Valley area was found to be pure and healthy and the spot was officially named as the site of the new community (Journal November 22, 1891).

Beauty

The members of the Academy Council also discussed the scenic appeal of various locations for the settlement including Media, Huntingdon Valley or even somewhere more remotely rural. The Huntingdon Valley site was questioned on the grounds that is was not as physically appealing as others since it had few trees and only one source of water (Journal July 23, 1891). The beauty of the new community was important because the people of the Advent Society wanted to escape not only the unhealthy environment of the city but its disorder and squalor. This desire for a more attractive environment was another practical reason for escaping the confines of the city which the members of the Advent Society shared with their Old Church neighbors. Cities had become unattractive, unclean and violent during their rapid growth in the "Gilded Age". The countryside offered a haven from this dreary scene.

No labor unions or frenzied strikes would accompany them to the country. They would not find transportation vehicles teeming the streets and making them unsafe to cross or piles of garbage cluttering alleyways. The country was clean, safe and beautiful. The rural environment contained the peace and tranquility that so many people craved at the end of the nineteenth century. This was the environment that people of the Advent Society found in the "restfulness and calm" of the Huntingdon Valley area (Tilson, Diary, June 15, 1892).

The large area in time to be called Bryn Athyn was a peaceful, rural, hilly countryside. Here and there there was an old stone farmhouse. There were woods, many of the trees were old and giant in size and there was a winding and a picturesque creek, the Pennypack, close by (White, 1987, 2).

These hills "abound in masses of wild-roses, sweet-briar [and] honeysuckle (Tilson, Diary, June 16, 1892)"

This idyllic environment attracted many Philadelphians to the spot on day trips. There was a picnic ground, known as Alnwick Grove, with a dance pavilion, on the edge of the creek just yards away from a rural train stop and the beautiful hills stretched for miles around it. Advent Society members began to frequent this spot as early as 1888. They began to spend their summers in the surrounding farmhouses in the years following and, eventually, relocated permanently to this spot to withdraw from the hectic and unclean life of the city.

Reasons Not to Move

There were negative aspects to moving to the countryside which the Advent Society had to consider before their final decision to adopt the project. Though the country air and environment were appealing, their were certain conveniences in the cities that would have to be sacrificed. Electricity was not as readily available in the country and doctors and hospitals were some distance away (Ridgway 1982, 90). People would also have to travel into the city for some of the clothing and domestic goods that they needed which would add to the burdens of keeping house and raising children. The Church members had to consider these difficulties and weigh them against their desires for a more pure environment.

Another factor that had to be considered was the expensive commute into the city that some would have to make each day. For the more wealthy members of the community, such as John Pitcairn and Robert Glenn, this did not present a problem, but for the middle-class population ,the financial hardship was a real concern. In fact, the cost of the commute to these men was one of the reasons that the community ended up only fifteen miles from the city instead of a more pure and isolated location many miles out in the country (Journal July 23, 1891).

On a more spiritual level, living in such an isolated society might increase the temptation to act uncharitably toward each other (College Letters, no. 13, 11). They would only see each other every day. In such closed contact, it would be more likely that small irritations could turn into raging conflicts. The society members had to be aware of this danger, and prepare themselves to deal with it, before they were ready to make the move to the country.

Morality

The motives for the move did not lie exclusively in the practical realm. The Advent Society also desired "a setting in which the Church could be free to express itself not only in worship but in all aspects of life (Gladish 1989, 311)." This was becoming increasingly difficult in the secularized modern environment. Science had changed many people's attitudes concerning religion and morality. The result of these new attitudes was that people came to believe in ideas that the members of the Advent Society considered "unreliable, false and seductive..." and "...[these were] gradually immersing man in a state worse than that of brute creation... (Schreck 1890a, 65)." This involved the denial of God and and His commandments, beliefs which the New Church considered sacred. T