Nostalgia Sunday – American Colony in Jaffa
Filed under: A New Reality, education, General, History and Culture, Life, Nostalgia Sunday, Profiles, Religion, Travel
It seems only right on July 4th to celebrate the good things that Americans have done for Israel. And there are many, ranging from defense systems to granola and gourmet coffee (thanks Cafe Joe!). But most people don’t know that Americans brought the first steel plow to this region; a small group of Christian colonists who landed in Jaffa in 1866.
They came, guided by their spiritual leader, the Reverend George J. Adams, who had founded the Church of the Messiah in Washington County, Maine, in 1862. Much like today, the post-Civil War era was riddled with messianic movements whose followers were convinced that Armageddon had taken place and that a new age was about to dawn. And so, the charismatic Adams, a Shakespearean actor, excommunicated Mormon missionary and Methodist preacher, gathered his 150 followers — most from Jonesport, Maine — who packed their belongings, purchased household goods and pre-fab wooden houses, and set off on the good ship Nellie Chapin bound for the Holy Land.
What happened next was, as Mark Twain put it in The Innocents Abroad, a “fiasco”.
The Maine Historical Society (some great pictures here) describes their fate dryly: “Upon their arrival, colonists discovered that Adams drank heavily and that his claims of rich lands and prosperity were untrue. Those who could afford passage left Palestine. Many of the others became ill and died because of the poor conditions. Adams eventually disappeared as the colony disbanded.”
But of course, there’s more to the story. Although their spiritual leader had crawled into a bottle, the Maine colonists were determined to make a go of their settlement. According to Wikipedia, “The colony began by camping on the beach, relying on local Arabs for food and water… By November, the colony had erected a number of simple frame houses. The pilgrims secured a 10-acre (40,000 m2) plot of land outside of Jaffa, where they founded the American Colony…”
There are other fascinating aspects, such as the interrelations between the early Zionists to the Maine settlers. According to a 2009 Jerusalem Post article , “Interestingly, the growing Zionist movement in Turkish Mandate Palestine responded positively to Adams’ plans. A correspondent for the Jaffa-based Zionist newspaper Hamagid reported the ‘important news’ of the colonists, and praised their ‘noble purpose… to pave a way for the Children of Israel to make possible their return to the land of their fathers.’ Hamagid even printed a letter from Adams, who called on Jews to join in the effort.”
And then there was the progress they sought to bring. For example, the Jerusalem Post notes that Mr. Adams’ missionary efforts were reinforced by Mrs. Adams, “‘a large-sized lady with a decidedly military manner,’ was herself determined to transform Palestine into a ‘fit place for the residence of the Jews’ using the very latest in US agricultural technology, and boasted of such wonders as ‘Johnson’s patent shifting mold-board and gangplow.’”
The colonists also built the Immanuel Church, which still stands and operates today.
But the unlucky streak continued. Within a month of arriving, six children and three adults had died. They began to farm but “[the] Jaffa locals were apparently bemused by the colonists’ ultra-modern plows, and refused to hire them as farm laborers.”
According to the Wikipedia entry, (which is quite extensive and really worth reading), “scavengers ravaged their crops and the community faced famine heading into the winter of 1866-67. This and the climate, the insecure and arbitrary treatment by the Ottoman authorities, made many colonists willing to remigrate to Maine.”
Because George Adams had taken their money, the colonists were forced to appeal to the US government for assistance to return. “By October 1867, the U.S. State Department had appropriated $3000 for the return of any of the remaining colonists who wished to leave Palestine… Twenty of the original colonists remained in Palestine, some of whom remained permanently.” Much of the real estate was sold to newly arriving Templars in 1869 and the property became known as the German Colony.
Among those Americans who stayed, Rolla Floyd was the most prominent. He arrived in Jaffa with a stagecoach and immediately set up what was, more or less, the Holy Land’s first pony express. Floyd is mentioned in the travelogue, Young Folks in Bible Lands by B. W. Johnson: “Mr. Crunden, our London conductor, observing our delight said: ‘Rolla Floyd is here. He is an American who lives at Joppa, and makes it his business to conduct travelers over Palestine. He will furnish our outfit on our camping tour. He always carries the U.S. flag, and you will see that it floats over your camp every night while you are in the country.’
In June 1868, Adams and his wife left Palestine and sailed to England. Wikipedia states that “When confronted by his past exploits by former followers or others, Adams would deny his identity and past.” Many returnees went back to Jonesport and joined the reorganized Mormon Church; so ashamed were they of their failure that they never spoke of the American Colony in Jaffa, and their grandchildren and great-grandchildren grew up never knowing the story.
That is, until about a decade and a half ago when a few things happened. For one thing, the American-German colony, which had fallen into great disrepair, underwent a modest revival when one of the wooden buildings was purchased, the structure moved on rollers about 6 meters and reopened as a fine restaurant (Keren, which has since closed).
Another thing that happened was that an Israeli documentarian made a film about the American colonists* and got many of their descendants to open up about their family history — and begin to take pride in it. Several books were written on the subject. And in 2002, Maine residents Jean and Reed Holmes, saved one of the wooden houses from destruction and opened the Maine Friendship House museum to visitors and groups.
The American Colony is now undergoing some serious gentrification with The Village, a luxury development that will preserve 70% of the buildings on site. According to the developers, “Among some of the indulgences the project offers are a naturally lit swimming pool, a wine cellar, a lucrative (sic) spa and an advanced fitness room. In addition, the project’s residents will be provided with an underground parking spot.”
It’s may not be quite what George Adams and his followers had in mind, but a personal parking spot in Tel Aviv? We might be living in the End of Days after all.
* Unfortunately, I am unable to recall her name or that of the movie and IMDB is failing me here. If anyone has seen or knows about this film, please let me know.
Foto Friday – Fresh Paint
Filed under: Art, Foto Friday, General, History and Culture, Israeliness, Pop Culture, Travel
The third Fresh Paint contemporary Israeli art fair opens next week, on May 5–8, 2010, at the newly renovated Warehouse 1 in the Old Jaffa Port. Since its inauguration two years ago, Fresh Paint has become Israel’s largest and most influential art event, bringing together all of the most significant players in the Israeli art world and supported by the country’s leading art institutions. It’s kind of a crazy art madhouse with tens of thousands of visitors from Israel and elsewhere.
As in previous years, Fresh Paint’s organizers asked each participating artist to create a post-card sized artwork for a project entitled The Secret Postcard, modeled after the Royal College of Art’s successful sale in London. Of course, Fresh Paint’s deal with aspects of Israeli reality:
Politics…
Leisure time…
History…
Progress…
And the existential, solid as a floor tile, fleeting as a steaming hot cup of tea.
The postcards are put on display and sold on a first-come, first-served basis at the uniform price of NIS 180. But there’s catch: the works are exhibited anonymously. Only afterwards do the buyers find out whether their purchase was created by a young up-and-comer or an already well-known artist. This year’s selection of 1,400 postcards includes works by over 700 artists, including well known names like Menashe Kadishman, Yair Garbuz, David Tartakover, Johanan Herson and Yehudit Sasportas. All proceeds from the project fund scholarships for youth from underprivileged backgrounds who excel in the arts, enabling them to study at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art’s Education Center program. All the postcards can also be viewed online.
Fresh paint 3 will include a silent auction of a work by the well-known Israeli artist Lea Nikel. All proceedings from the sale will go to finance art workshops for children with cancer hospitalized at the Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer.
All works by Fresh Paint 3’s independent artists are available for purchase at the fair, with revenue for these works passed directly to the artists on a commission-free basis.
This is one event definitely worth visiting. For better or for worse, it provides insight into the art scene and, for a fair price, you can support our local artists. Plus, it’s fun! And once you’re done with Fresh Paint, dinner at Doctor Shakshouka will make for a perfect night.
Paper boats for three solstices
Filed under: Art, coexistence, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Religion
Every year, Chanuka is arguably the biggest week for children’s entertainment offerings across Israel, with options ranging from lavish pop stage productions like Festigal to museum activities to themed expositions at shopping malls.
Somewhere in-between all of the above is the free Origami Festival set to take place at the Jaffa Port tomorrow and a week from today. The festival explores the nautical theme inherent to its setting by offering workshops on how to fold square pieces of paper into sailboats according to Japanese craft traditions. Participants will also be given the opportunity to race their boats against one another on a specially prepared track, complete with fans to help replicate windy conditions, and prizes will be awarded to the victors.
The other theme to the festival that resonates with its setting is coexistence. Jaffa is home to sizeable Jewish, Muslim and Christian communities that live side by side, so the festival is a celebration of the winter solstice holidays of all three faiths – hence the justification for its pre-Chanuka launch.
Origami actually has a tradition of being tied to coexistence-themed initiatives. Famed Hiroshima atomic bomb victim Sadako Sasaki, who died in a hospital in 1955 of leukemia, spent her final days folding paper in to cranes, inspired by an old Japanese adage that those who fold 1000 cranes are entitled to a wish. Since then, Sadako and her folding efforts have been employed as a symbol for mankind’s longings to get along, and it was based on these teachings that Miri Golan founded the Israeli Origami Center, based in Ramat Gan, in 1993.
Golan and the IOC have held many ethnic-encounter workshops and events, including a major convention in Jerusalem’s Old City this past July, which was attended by many of the world’s ambassadors to Israel, many of the superstars of the international Origami scene and 1500 folded works of art sent as blessings for peace in Jerusalem by craftsmen of many faiths. The organization’s activities have also included Folding Together, a series of workshops bringing Israel’s Muslim and Jewish youth together via origami since 2002.
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