Altruria, California facts for kids

Altruria was a special kind of community in Sonoma County, California. It was a short-lived experiment where people tried to live together based on ideas of fairness and sharing, inspired by Christian beliefs. This community was also influenced by a popular book from 1894 called A Traveler from Altruria by William Dean Howells.

The Story of Altruria

How Altruria Started

The Altruria community was founded by a minister named Edward B. Payne (1847–1923). He was a Unitarian minister, which means he led a church that believed in one God and focused on reason and ethics. In October 1894, Payne and about thirty of his followers started Altruria near Santa Rosa, California.

Edward B. Payne was born in Vermont. He became a minister and preached about ideas of fairness and helping others. He was very interested in social change. He was inspired by the book A Traveler from Altruria, which talked about a perfect society.

Many groups interested in these ideas formed in places like San Francisco and Los Angeles. One group in Berkeley decided they wanted to do more than just talk. They wanted to create a real community based on these ideas. Edward B. Payne was one of the first members of this group.

Life in the Community

The Altrurians started their own newspaper called The Altrurian. It was first published in October 1894. The newspaper helped share the community's goals and encouraged more people to join similar groups.

The Altrurians found land with small houses and a grist mill (a mill for grinding grain) in the hills near Santa Rosa. The first people moved into the community in October 1894.

After settling in, the community decided to open a hotel on their property. They hoped the hotel would help them earn money.

Why Altruria Ended

Running the hotel turned out to be very difficult. The community faced many problems with how they managed things and how they got money. They tried to reorganize their plans to avoid going broke, just one year after they started.

They even tried to open two new locations. However, the money problems were too big to fix. Because of these financial difficulties, all the Altruria locations had to close down in 1896.

Even though they faced challenges, the Altrurians worked hard. They grew fruits in their orchards and vegetables in their gardens. They sold what they grew in a shop in San Francisco. A person named Job Harriman managed this shop for them.