Abstract:
This thesis delves into the material culture of three American religions—Shakers, Oneida
Perfectionists, and Latter-day Saints (Mormons)—in the nineteenth century. Looking at
the religions’ Utopian ideals, the author discusses how the philosophies of materiality and
the actual goods extant in these communities coincided, and what the emerging successes
and tensions reveal about the intersection of material ideas with spiritual goals. This
thesis thus constitutes a cursory analysis of each community in turn, followed by an
examination of the artifacts from these groups, ultimately grappling with the question of
how they each realized immaterial ideas in everyday life.
