Bishop Hill Colony, Historic colony settlement in Bishop Hill, Illinois, United States
Bishop Hill Colony is a 19th-century Swedish settlement featuring a three-story brick hotel, a Greek Revival church, dormitories for residents, and various work buildings arranged across the site. The preserved structures show how the community was organized to support both its religious life and day-to-day farming operations.
Swedish pietist Eric Janson founded Bishop Hill Colony in 1846, bringing roughly 1,400 followers from Sweden to establish a religious community in Illinois. The settlement functioned as an independent village until internal conflicts and economic hardships led to the community's breakup in 1861.
The Colony Church displays folk paintings by Olof Krans, a resident artist whose works show everyday moments of the Swedish settlers at work and in community life. His images offer a window into how people spent their days within this close-knit religious community.
The Bishop Hill State Historic Site allows visitors to walk through several restored buildings including the hotel, dormitories, and work structures from the settlement era. Wear comfortable shoes since exploring the site involves moving between different locations, and informational signs help explain the purpose and history of each building.
The settlement operated under a communal system where residents shared property and worked together in the fields, a rare form of economic organization in the 19th century. This collective way of living is still visible in how the buildings are arranged around shared spaces, showing how closely people lived together.
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