KING KORESH The Man From Inside the Earth Being the biography of one of America’s great eccentrics, Cyrus Teed, a cult leader, who at the turn of the last century led a small army of converts in the belief that the earth is indeed spherical, only we are all living on the inside! 1 KING KORESH The Man From Inside the Earth Being the biography of one of America’s great eccentrics, Cyrus Teed, a cult leader who at the turn of the last century led a small army of converts in the belief that the earth is indeed spherical, only we are all living on the inside! PART ONE INTRODUCTION “Koreshanity in a Nutshell” In which a summary of Teed‟s religious and scientific tenets are presented. It sheds light on the sometimes arcane and difficult nuances of Teed‟s thought and teachings and sets a foundation upon which to understand the activities of his life as the messiah of Koreshanity. CHAPTER ONE “Experiments” 1 Described here is the first “scientific” experiment by which the Koreshan Geodetic Staff believed they had proof of Teed‟s basic premise – that we are living on the inside surface of a sphere. The experiment was conducted in July of 1896 along the Old Illinois Drainage Canal near Summit, Illinois. 2 The Koreshans believed they had established an even more definitive proof of the earth‟s true shape. An absolutely straight line constructed through a wooden post set perpendicular to the earth‟s surface will form either a tangent to the earth‟s surface, a line parallel to the earth‟s surface, or a chord that eventually cuts into the earth‟s surface in two places. Such an experiment would allegedly prove, respectively, that we are living on the outside of a sphere, a flat earth, or nestled inside the concave surface of a sphere. We learn how the experiment was conceived, experience the excitement as it is carried out, and witness how the results of this experiment impact humankind. CHAPTER TWO “Beginnings: Into You a Child is Born” Here officially begins the biography of Koresh, with an extensive family history that eventually leads to the birth and young childhood of Cyrus Romulus Teed. We then follow Teed as a young man. He begins a medical apprenticeship under the tutelage of his uncle. He marries his third cousin. Soon they have Teed‟s only child, a son. They move to NYC where Teed joins the Union‟s medical corps. Upon discharge from the army, Teed attends the Eclectic Medical College in NYC, after which he sets up a practice in Utica, NY with his uncle. Becoming interested in magnetic healing, alchemy, and the occult, soon Teed has a vision that changes his life forever. 2 CHAPTER THREE “The Illumination of Koresh” Here is Cyrus Teed‟s complete and unexpurgated first-hand account of his encounter with the Goddess and the enlightenment she bestowed upon him. One of Teed‟s more interesting and readable works, he shares with the reader how he learned of the earth‟s true nature and of his role as the new messiah. CHAPTER FOUR “First Steps” Mystical, magical, and, most likely, mythical beginnings, complete with nimbuses and angels, Teed and his family nevertheless must succumb to the practicalities of daily life. Teed initially proselytizes through his practice but soon he is labeled “that crazy doctor” and loses most of his patients. Searching for a first foothold, he establishes a small communal household in Moravia, NY, subsisting upon the manufacturing of mops. He later moves his group to Syracuse, NY where he finds short-lived success until a newspaper campaign against him, brought on by a disenchanted follower, drives Teed and his early followers from town. CHAPTER FIVE “Chicago Messiah” Many Chicagoans in the 1880‟s developed a curiosity and penchant for viewpoints beyond their mundane “Sunday” Christianity. Mysticism blossomed there and the town was ripe for Teed and his ideas. He was invited to speak before the National Association for Mental Scientists. Igniting his small audience, Teed attracted a following large enough to firmly establish his colony in Chicago‟s Washington Heights, a base from which to proselytize the unbelievers. CHAPTER TEN “Celibacy and Children” Teed believed that celibacy was a necessary prerequisite for immortality and that immortality is to be valued above all else. Here these beliefs are developed and explored. Teed‟s exploitation of the woman‟s restoration movement towards this end is discussed. Two aspects of Koreshan Society that had great impact on their small community were child rearing and education. These are spoken of in light of the Unity‟s self-proclaimed right to raise the children “exclusively without any regard to what the parents may suppose to be the right thing.” Koreshanity‟s economic views, based on “Christ‟s communism,” are explored. We learn that the unbalanced distribution of wealth leads to debauchery which makes impossible the necessary celibate life essential for immortality. Only Koreshan economic views can rectify this. 3 CHAPTER SEVEN “Networking” Koreshanity wasn‟t the only new religious cult being promulgated around late-19th century America. There were others who also claimed messiahship, celibacy, and holders of Truth. Teed had a plan to unite them all and consequently had run-ins with the Shakers, the Harmonists, and Thomas Lake Harris‟ Brotherhood of the New Life. Everyone thought Teed was only out for their money. PART TWO INTRODUCTION “Plans for a New Jerusalem” The Biblical interpretations that convinced Teed of his role as the New Messiah also showed that he would establish and rule over a new holy city, the New Jerusalem. But even holy cities must be planned. CHAPTER EIGHT Estero Bay A mix of Koreshan mythology and historical fact tells the fascinating story of how Teed obtained, although “hoodwinked” may be more accurate, an old German homesteader‟s 300 acres of land along and around the Estero River in Florida‟s, then pristine and undeveloped, Everglades. Sixteen intrepid Koreshans left blustery Chicago for tropical Florida to begin construction of the New Jerusalem. Early life in Estero was hard. Mosquitoes, fleas, and rattlesnakes were their first enemies, but slowly they began to transform the unruly tropical landscape into an inhabitable home, ready for the first influx of new colonists. CHAPTER NINE “Golden Years” During the Koreshan Unity‟s heyday the small and energetic community thrived. Extensive acreage was purchased in and around Estero. Numerous buildings were erected utilizing lumber cut and shaped at their own sawmill. Food production was at a peak. A water well was dug. A dairy was embarked upon. A bakery was established. Meals were delicious. Extensive sunken gardens, containing all kinds of exotic imports, beautified parked areas along the Estero River. Avenues were planned and paved wide enough to accommodate the expected soon-to-arrive eight million believers who would populate Estero as soon as Koreshanity‟s truth became evident to all. The Guiding Star Press was reestablished in Estero. Their magazine tracts and pamphlets were again being innovatively printed to help spread Teed‟s gospel. There was now time for religious celebrations. Dramatic plays and musical concerts, from the Unity‟s prize- winning brass band, were performed upon a floating stage with audiences sitting along the banks of the Estero River. These were truly Koreshanity‟s Golden Years. 4 CHAPTER TEN “Trouble with Neighbors” With so many of Teed‟s followers joining the colony in Estero, the Koreshan Unity was able to gain local political power. The Koreshans block voted, and as long as they voted along the same lines as the local Fort Myers regulars, relations between the two towns were good. But when the Koreshans voted Republican in the 1904 elections, the local Democratic leaders waged war against them. This prompted the Koreshans to establish a new local political party. It all culminated in a street brawl in Fort Myers with Teed getting clipped hard in the head. CHAPTER ELEVEN “Final Days” Teed and his followers believed him to be immortal. So when complications due to Teed‟s street brawl brought on his demise, the colony was shocked. For days many sat praying over his decomposing body waiting for the decay to reverse itself. When finally ordered to bury the body, they sat vigil outside a quickly erected tomb awaiting his resurrection. A consequence of Teed‟s death was the fracturing of the colony into several small sects, each claiming to be the true representation of Koreshanity. German translations of Teed‟s works found some acceptance in Germany where the Hollow Earth Doctrine was developed and promulgated by Peter Bender, plagiarizer of Teed‟s ideas. Hitler became immersed in the possibilities of the doctrine and had top scientists experiment with newly developed radar in an attempt to spy on England by pointing their devices above them at a 45-degree angle. When it didn‟t work, Peter Bender ended up in a concentration camp. In Estero, the number of members belonging to the Unity slowly dwindled until only two members remained in 1960. One of them, Hedwig Michel, had been President of the Unity since 1948. She had arrived in Estero shortly before World War II as a Jewish refugee on the advice of her mentor, Peter Bender. BIBLIOGRAPHY The book concludes with a full bibliography of over fifty sources. 5 KING KORESH The Man From Inside the Earth PART ONE INTRODUCTION *** “Thy Will Be Done IN Earth As It Is In Heaven” Koreshanity in a Nutshell Because of its deep and penetrating knowledge of our finite and all-encompassing world, Koreshanity is the religio-science through which the structural and spiritual form of our universe is revealed.