"The Great Divorce: A 19-Century Mother's Extraordinary Fight Against Her Husband, The Shakers, and Her Times." (Atlantic Monthly Press)
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-08-05/great-divorce-19-century-mothers-extraordinary-fight-against-her-husband-shakers-an
The story of a 19th-century woman, whose sensational divorce and custody battle against her Shaker husband roused the sympathy of the American public, attracted the notice of Thomas Jefferson, and led to the only legislative divorce in New York history.
Guests
Ilyon Woo
a writer who holds a Ph.D. in English from Columbia University
Comments
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Ms. Woo implied that the birth of a "mulatto" child to a white couple should have been evidence of infidelity, but that even this wasn't enough proof at the time. That may not have been a bad thing.
Genetically there may be many reasons why a "white" couple could have a "mulatto" or even black child. Either or both the husband and wife could have had a black ancestor they don't know about and be carrying the genes even though neither one of them has any of the features (phenotype) commonly used to identify a black person.
The husband or wife could be the child of a mixed race couple "passing" as white. Concealing one's race may have been considered a crime in some parts of the country, but it has nothing to do with infidelity.
What an amazing story. We had a religious community in SW Florida called Koreshan-pronounced kor- resh-ans. They were celebate & lived in a self contained commune. They died off. I think Angelena Jole should be the lead role, as a strong female.
The Shakers were very motivated to bring children into the group; with all members being celibate, the only way to perpetuate the group is for them to bring into the group the children of non-members (through adoption or by encouraging families to join).
Interesting story, though I realize that the story isn't necessarily about the Shakers, they have an interesting history.
My ancestor sued the Pleasant Hill Shakers in Kentucky over the rights of children brought into the society, to wages for their labor and their portion of property surrendered by their parents, who wanted to leave when they were old enough. He became a resident of Pleasant Hill as a young child when his father and stepmother joined the sect and he left as a young man and became a prominent attorney in Illinois.