John Humphrey Noyes (1811-1886) - Find a Grave Memorial

Sociologist and Religious Leader. He studied theology and decided to apply his unconventional ideas to everyday life. He believed that Christ's second coming had already happened, and that man was living in a new age, with a God-given independent will. If this will could be controlled with spiritual direction, man could live without sin. If man could be made sinless, no church could condemn him to Hell for not repenting. His ordination revoked for this out of the mainstream belief, in 1836 he started an organization in Putney, Vermont, preaching his doctrine of Perfectionism and practicing complex marriage. This led to his arrest for adultery, so he moved with his followers to Oneida, New York and organized a commune that lived and worked together to manufacture silk thread, leather goods and other products. The Oneida Community also engaged in several out of the ordinary sexual practices, including male continence and "free love", a term Noyes coined. In 1879, Oneida Community opponents planned to arrest him for advocating free love, and he fled to Niagara Falls. Recognizing that his community would not outlast this opposition, he spent his final years arranging traditional marriages for his followers to legitimize their children. After his death the Oneida Community was organized as a corporation, his son Pierrepont focused its efforts on one product line, and Oneida Limited became the world's largest and most well-known producer of silverware and stainless steel flatware.

Bio by: Bill McKern