Page "Harmony Society" Paragraph 23

During the summer and fall of 1814, many Harmonists fell sick from fever ( malaria ) and work on the new town nearly ceased.

During this time the Society lost about 120 people and others fell ill until conditions were improved and the swamps around the area were drained.

Despite these illnesses, construction of the new town continued.

By 1819 the Harmonites had built 150 log homes, a church, a community storehouse, barns, stables, and a tavern, along with thriving shops and mills, and cleared land for farming.

As the new settlement in Indiana grew, it also began to attract new arrivals, including emigrants from Germany, who expected the Harmonists to pay for their passage to America.