The In The News

Mary's City of David has become National "Historic District"
January 2009

Mary's City of David has received an approval for placement upon the National Register of Historic Places as an "historic district". Mary's City of David National Register Historic District Nomination was presented before the Michigan Historic Preservation Review Board in Lansing, on January 16, by Heather Van Wormer, Ph.D., Anthropology Dept. Grand Valley State University and Bob Christensen, State Historic Preservation Office, Lansing. The Nomination was reviewed and unanimously approved.

Doctor Van Wormer has been associated with Mary's City of David for over a decade, during which she received her doctorate from MSU, 2004, with her research thesis: Ideology in All Things: Material Culture and Intentional Communities, which predominately reflected her comparative studies at Mary's City of David and the historic Oneida community in New York.

Doctor Van Wormer has also pursued further study on the City of David in her written research papers presented at the annual Communal Studies Association conferences. She serves presently as a board member of that international association of scholars, active community (communal organizations) representatives, historic preservationists and ancestors thereof. Ron Taylor of Mary's City of David is also an active member of this association. Doctor Van Wormer is also presently assisting Taylor at the colony in collection, bibliography and assemblage of its archival collections, which constitute the world's largest collection of original documents, photographs and artifacts on the Christian-Israelite movement that can be traced to the Philadelphian Society in England of 1652.

The Nomination was accepted upon the argument of significance at State level in three criteria:

1. Property is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history.
2. Property embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguished entity whose components lack individual distinction.
3. Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information important in pre-history or history.

~ Read more of the three criteria here. ~

The "district" of description and analysis found 74 contributing buildings, 2 contributing sites and 1 contributing structure, while also containing 7 non-contributing buildings. Within the 300 acres of the colony properties, 140 acres are associated as contributing and being necessarily contiguous to the district boundary.

The complete catalog of 81 architectural descriptions for the district were written by Amanda Harrell, a senior graduate student at Andrews University, School of Architecture.

The Nomination document is a volume of 155 pages with 4 CDs containing over 100 images, maps and documents.

Primary materials used in historical research were from Mary's City of David Archival Collections, Clare Adkin, Brother Benjamin, 1990; Robert Myers, Millennial Visions, Earthly Pursuits, The Israelite House of David, 1999; R. James Taylor, Mary's City of David, 1996, R. James Taylor, 200 Years, Joanna Southcott, 1792, through the City of David, 1992; and the several research and doctorate papers by Doctor Van Wormer.

Ron Taylor, Secretary of Trustees for Mary's City of David, was invited to attend the Nomination presentation on January 16 and was asked to represent the colony in the review and to address the query as to what importance a listing upon the National Register would become:

As members of the SW Michigan Tourist Council, Berrien County Historical Association, The Historical Society of Michigan, the newly formed (2008) SW Michigan History Museum Consortium, Vintage Base Ball Association of America, and working with the New Territory Arts Association (Arts District in Benton Harbor), Blossomtime Festival, Inc. and the Old West Michigan Pike cultural/historical trail, we feel that in partnering/networking with area tourism concerns we can add the distinction of being recognized nationally with the Register listing in being a unique attraction as a "living history" that remains uncommercialized and authentic to its origins in design and purpose, for which it was commended as one of its criteria of significance. Located within the first 30 miles of Michigan, from the State's busiest welcome center (New Buffalo), and before the inter-state goes east and north, there is much to be said for having a unique attraction as a nationally recognized cultural/historic site for drawing and revitalizing tourism along the original West Michigan Pike (1911) that became THE summertime destination for Chicagoans and Hoosiers following the lakeshore communities from New Buffalo to Mackinaw for most of the 20^th Century. Our hopes are that this unique history, preserved on our properties and showcased by the summer-season museum, tours and events, which are original to the designs and integrity of the organization (such as "vintage" base ball, "Welcome Back To 1934" vegetarian meal reservations, special programmes on the history and our one-of-a-kind annual collectibles sale), will awaken new interests drawn to the area by a National recognition upon the Register of Historic Places in America.

In planning Governor Granholm's 2003 "Hidden Treasures of Michigan" tour, the Governor insisted on a stop at Benton Harbor. Travel Michigan chose Mary's City of David as the destination for her stop. This was another recognition on the State level and was one of several during our Centennial year (1903-2003) summer long events calendar.

Three Criteria of Significance:

Criteria A:

As a religious intentional community, Mary's City of David is a rare example. The founding of intentional communities is patterned—at times of great social change (i.e., the industrial revolution, the 1960s, etc.) and rises at a remarkable rate. The members of these groups are attempting to fix what they find wrong in the wider world, be it gender relations, economic stratification, or something else, and these cultural critiques are embedded into the design and ideology of the community.

As such, these intentional communities become remarkable indicators of how people grapple with widespread and rapid social change. As one might guess, attempting to change social, economic, and other aspects of society is not an easy task, and the overwhelming majority of intentional communities are quite short-lived. This is often especially true of communities whose emphasis includes millennialism. Mary's City of David is known not only for its amazing economic and social success, but also for its longevity. Its organization and ideology represents not only the history of the Christian-Israelite faith, but also the wider social contexts of their 'formative' moments: the turn of the 20th century when the original colony was founded and the 1930s when the colony split and reorganized.

The history of tourism in the United States can in many ways be investigated at Mary's City of David. From the very beginning, the House of David and City of David have been intimately involved in the tourism industry in southwestern Michigan. When they first arrived in Benton Harbor, their settlement was adjacent to the Eastman Springs. The Eastman Springs was a successful Victorian-era spa, complete with hotels and gardens, whose 'healing waters' were shipped as far as Chicago and Milwaukee. The colony members paid close attention to the Eastman Springs businesses, and the opening of the House of David's Eden Springs (one of the first large amusement parks in the region) put the Eastmans out of business, and by 1915 the property was abandoned.

Throughout their entire history the colony has been famous for its barnstorming base ball and basketball teams. In the 1930s, the City of David started another successful endeavor --- a summer resort business connected to several vegetarian restaurants. This resort business catered to almost an exclusively Orthodox Jewish clientele from Illinois and Indiana (the colony even built a synagogue for them in 1938 which was in operation until 1976), who spent their summers at the colony well into the 1960s.

Today only the later resort housing at the City of David remains intact; the Eden Springs Amusement Park is abandoned and overgrown, and none of the buildings from the earlier 19th century Eastman Springs spa survive, although several of the springs and their surrounding features can be identified. For the past several summers, the colony has hosted a 'resorter' reunion and many people who came to the resort as children attend. In 1997 the City of David opened a museum and since then they have become involved in efforts to expand the tourism of historic sites in southwestern Michigan. In addition, the City of David is once again playing base ball --- the House of David Echoes are major participants I the "vintage" base ball Association across the Midwest.

Criteria C:

Mary's City of David contains a notable collection of vernacular architecture. The colony's vernacular architecture, especially that built during the colony's early years in the 1930s and 1940s, reflects the colony's communal organization, the need for both economy and haste in housing the colony members and its operations, and the architectural talents of some of the members of the community. Many of the key buildings were built in the colony's earliest days during the height of the Depression, and are interesting both for being planned to house multi-purpose functions and their construction using salvaged and reused materials, as well as materials such as rockface concrete block produced by the colony.

Since many of the colonists arrived from all over the globe, they brought their architectural and carpentry traditions with them, and these influences can easily be seen in the colony's buildings. Features of some buildings, designed by colony architect, Kristov Christhart (born in Prussia), are believed to reflect, in simple, small-scale, wooden form, the architecture of the old country. The log, frame and concrete block cottages reflect an awareness on the part of the colony of standard resort cottage architecture of the time, while the form and arrangement of the synagogue, a building form with which the colony members would probably not have been familiar, must reflect a cooperative effort on the part of the colony members to build a building that would meet the requirements of their Orthodox Jewish vacationers.

Furthermore, since the property has been in the hands of the colonists for its history and has religious meaning as well, the maintenance and preservation of these buildings is undertaken with extreme care. Finally, as an intentional community, the architecture and landscape of Mary's City of David was meant to operationalize a specific ideology, in physical form, The design and symbolism present at the colony directly reflects the colonists' religious and social beliefs. It is a physical demonstration of their ideology, both reflecting and reinforcing community ideals.

Criteria D:

Several areas within Mary's City of David have the potential to yield important information about pre-historic and historic peoples and endeavors. For potential pre-historic resources, the artifacts collected throughout the spa-era of Eastman Springs hint at further discoveries. The springs were no doubt an important water source in the area, particularly during the winter when other water sources freeze over. Because the site was abandoned by 1915 and has not been developed since, the integrity of subterranean  resources is possible. This circumstance has also benefited historical archaeological there, particularly pertaining to the history of spas and other kinds of Victorian resorts. No archaeological study has been conducted.

In addition to these, the immense and varied collections of material culture at the City of David are a valuable resource. Because of a collective 'Depression mentality' objects and tools are saved at the City of David. From the intact printing presses and equipment to the 1954 Ford farm stake (grain) truck with less than 5000 original miles registered, the City of David is a unique resource 20th century material history.

Blossomtime Festival Honors Ron Taylor
February 09, 2007

The Gordon W. Hosbein Volunteer of the Year Award was established in 1996. This award is to honor the many years of service and dedication that Gordon gave to the Blossomtime Organization, by naming annually an outstanding festival volunteer. Nominees must have at least three years of service with the festival. Previous winners of this prestigious award and Blossomtime Board of Directors are not eligible for this award.

This year the award was presented to Ron Taylor for his many hours volunteering this past year. Ron has been a volunteer for Blossomtime for many years in arranging and hosting the House of David Echoes Base Ball Club in the Grand Floral Parade and the vintage baseball games with the Blossom Queens after the blessing of the blossoms and during fair week in August.

In 2006 he was the guest curator of the 100th year Blossomtime exhibition at the Box Factory in St. Joseph which covered the historical events of the 100 years of Blossomtime. He also chaired the commemorative poster project designing and producing ten 11 x 17 unique posters with 168 photos selected from the Blossomtime Archives.  He set up exhibits in local businesses and post offices and in addition he arranged the marketing efforts with several gift shops. He was honored in 2006 as an Honorary Grand Marshall in the 2006 Grand Floral Parade.

Ron will receive a Blossomtime Patron membership and will be Blossomtime's honored guest at all 2007 festival events including the Dignitaries Brunch prior to the start of the parade and ride in a special convertible in the 2007 parade.

Ron serves as Trustee Secretary for Mary's City of David and as, Director and Curator of their Museum in Benton Harbor.