Fire engine built for George Rapp by Pat Lyon, at Monitor Corner fire.""When George Rapp established his community on the Wabash, he brought with him from Pennsylvania a fire engine, made for him in 1804 by Pat Lyon of Philadelphia. This engine has been in New Harmony ever since. It is a hand power machine, the pumping may be done by eighteen men. A fire company was organized in 1848, and until 1879 the old Rapp engine was the only one used." (http://purl.dlib.indiana.edu/iudl/inauthors/printable/VAC2089) The Monitor corner was at Main St. and Tavern St., where later New Harmony Tavern stood. At some time it was known as the Monitor Tavern, and this is what burned. The damage was extensive and not limited to the tavern--a number of other businesses and residences were also destroyed. NOTE: in a bizarre twist, this same block burned to the ground on May 11, 1998.""Johann Georg Rapp (November 1, 1757 in Iptingen, Duchy of W�rttemberg � August 7, 1847 in Economy, Pennsylvania) was the founder of the religious sect called Harmonists, Harmonites, Rappites, or the Harmony Society. Born in Iptingen, Duchy of W�rttemberg, Germany, Rapp became inspired by the philosophies of Jakob B�hme, Philipp Jakob Spener, and Emanuel Swedenborg, among others. In the 1780s, George Rapp began preaching and soon started to gather a group of his own followers. His group officially split with the Lutheran Church in 1785 and was promptly banned from meeting. The persecution that Rapp and his followers experienced caused them to leave Germany and come to the United States in 1803. Rapp was a Pietist, and a number of his beliefs were shared by the Anabaptists, as well as groups such as the Shakers. Rapp's religious beliefs and philosophy were the cement that held his community together both in Germany and in America � a Christian community and commune, which in America organized as the Harmony Society. The Harmony Society built three American towns, became rich, famous, and survived for 100 years � roughly from 1805 until 1905."" In 1804, Rapp was able to secure a large tract of land in Pennsylvania and started his first commune. This first commune, 'Harmonie', (Harmony), Butler County, Pennsylvania, soon grew to a population of about 800, and was highly profitable. At Harmony, the Harmony Society was formally organized on February 15, 1805, and its members contracted to hold all property in common and to submit to spiritual and material leadership by Rapp and associates. In 1807, celibacy was advocated as the preferred custom of the community in an attempt to purify themselves for the coming Millennium. In 1814, the society sold their first town in Pennsylvania to Mennonites for 10 times the amount originally paid for the land, and the entire commune moved out west to Indiana where their new town was also known as Harmony. Ten years after the move to Indiana the commune moved again, this time it returned to Pennsylvania and named their town '�konomie', Economy. The Indiana settlement was sold to Robert Owen, at which point it was renamed New Harmony, Indiana. George Rapp lived out his remaining days in the town of Economy, Pennsylvania, until August 7, 1847, when he died at the age of 89." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Rapp).
