Harmony in Wood: Furniture of the Harmony Society

The exhibit complements a soon to be published book of the same title, written by Dr. Zimmerman, that examines Harmonist furniture and the Society that produced it. "Harmonist furniture is unsurpassed in the way it connects us to this community and the past in general,” said Dr. Zimmerman. “The variety of furniture forms that survive, their design and their materials express Harmony Society values and evoke many dimensions of its early life and culture." Funding for the research and publication of the furniture book was provided by the Richard C. von Hess Foundation, the Heinz Endowments, the Gookin Family Foundation, and the Julia Lea Hillman-Simonds Foundation.
Old Economy Village, which sits within Ambridge’s National Historic Landmark District, was the third and final home of the German, communal Harmony Society. The community, of which eighty original buildings remain, was begun in 1824 and served as the Society’s home until 1905. Group founder, George Rapp, arrived in America in 1803 and shortly thereafter settled in Butler County, Pennsylvania where he began the first community called Harmony. In 1814, the Society moved to Indiana Territory and there built a town now known as New Harmony, Indiana, which was later sold to British social reformer Robert Owen.
Rapp and his followers returned to Pennsylvania ten years later to settle along the Ohio River. Today, Old Economy Village maintains seventeen original structures, formal and vegetable gardens, and the Society’s cemetery.
“The Harmony Society was communal, like the Shakers,” said Old Economy Village site director Mary Ann Landis, “but its furniture was quite different. The Harmonists were from Württemberg so logically that background was reflected in what they spoke, wore, ate, and the things they made. That’s not to say that American culture didn’t eventually have an impact on the Society, or the way they did business.”
The Village is unique in that much of the furniture that remains was either made by Society members or purchased by them. “Their original cabinet shop still survives intact on the site,” said site, and exhibit, curator Sarah Buffington. “It’s furnished with its original tools, many of which were made in one of the three Harmonist communities. This, along with the Society’s extensive business records, allows us to gain some insights into one avenue of early western Pennsylvania furniture making.”
The exhibit will be open during regular site hours, Tuesday through Saturday, 9 AM to 5 PM, and Sundays from noon to 5 PM until December 31, 2009. Admission to the exhibit is included in the admission to the site. $9.00 Adult, $8.00 Senior, $6.00 Youth. For more information, call (724)266-4500 or email ra-oldeconomy@state.pa.us.

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