# Were there any sucessful hippie communes? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 13, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126 "2004-02-13T23:36:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/1 "2004-02-13T23:36:43Z")
A co-worker and I were discussing hippie communes of the 60’s. Did any of them last very long? Are there any around now? ---
**Author:** ![burundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@burundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burundi)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2004, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/2 "2004-02-14T00:32:02Z")
How do you define success? My in-laws lived on The Farm, a hippie commune in Tennesee for a few years. I believe it’s still around in some form or another. One of the leaders, Ina Mae Gaskin, is a very well-known midwife and advocate for natural childbirth. My in-laws eventually left, but my mother-in-law still looks on the place very fondly. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2004, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/3 "2004-02-14T00:55:55Z")
[The Farm](http://www.thefarm.org/) is indeed still in continuous operation since about 1971. StG ---
**Author:** ![tsarina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@tsarina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsarina)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2004, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/4 "2004-02-14T02:49:06Z")
Christiania, in Copenhagen, is still going strong: [http://www3.aok.dk/E/V/CPHDK/0006/13/62/](http://www3.aok.dk/E/V/CPHDK/0006/13/62/) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2004, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/5 "2004-02-14T15:11:05Z")
I, sadly, wasn’t quite born on the Farm, although I sometimes gleefully tell folks that my sister was born in a school bus. She was delivered by Ina Mae Gaskin. My folks left before I came along, based to no small degree on my dad’s perception that Stephen Gaskin, the farm’s leader, was a pompous and overbearing cult guru. (when my father publicly disagreed with him, Gaskin sent my father to the “Rock Tumbler”, a tent where “his rough edges would be worn off.” Yeesh) Anyway, awhile back Stephen was retired from Farm leadership, and it became much less commune-y: folks no longer live in buses but rather live in houses, and the houses are individually owned. It does look, however as if [there’s a small part of the Farm](http://www.thefarm.org/lifestyle/akbp2.html) that is still commune-like: called The Second Foundation, it’s made up of about 30 people that function under IRS rules for a monastery and share a large component of their income. Note that this article is almost ten years old; I dunno whether they’re still active. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2004, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/6 "2004-02-14T18:00:02Z")
There’s a small one on Hwy 285 just outside of Morrison, Colorado. I think some of them have jobs now, though… ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2004, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/7 "2004-02-15T00:41:57Z")
[Koinonia Partners](http://www.koinoniapartners.org/) in Americus, Georgia was really pre-hippie, but it’s still around. From the linked site: > [@](#): > > Koinonia Farm began in 1942, when Clarence and Florence Jordan and Mabel and Martin England came to Sumter County, Georgia to live out the teachings of Jesus amidst the poverty and racism of the rural South. They envisioned forming an interracial community where blacks and whites could live and work together in a spirit of partnership. Based on a radical call to discipleship, Koinonia’s very presence confronted racism, militarism and materialism with their commitment to: > > 1. Treat all human beings with dignity and justice > 2. Choose love over violence. > 3. Share all possessions and live simply. > 4. Be stewards of the land and its natural resources. 1942 or not, they sound like hippies to me. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2004, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/8 "2004-02-15T19:57:16Z")
There is one that makes hammocks, When I bought the hamock, it came with a little blurb about how this community is supported in total by hammock sales. Don’t know the brand though. ---
**Author:** ![Reader99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df788c/32.png) [@Reader99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reader99)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2004, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/9 "2004-02-15T23:14:16Z")
the hammock-makers are at Twin Oaks, founded in 1967 in Virginia, not too far from Washington DC, and apparently still doing well. they have just celebrated having their largest membership ever. [http://www.twinoaks.org](http://www.twinoaks.org) ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/10 "2004-02-16T03:02:50Z")
The “hippie” style commune in the United States goes back at least to the mid 1800’s. The most famous and successful one I can think of was the Oneida Community which lasted about 30 years. It grew into a number of successful businesses that included animal traps and silverware. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/11 "2004-02-16T03:19:38Z")
I wonder how many were started with the best of intentions and then abandoned. You have to figure that when you get a large group of people together, there’s going to be some who aren’t gonna contribute to the group. Every society has its slackers and I’m sure the communes had their share. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/12 "2004-02-16T04:46:48Z")
[Arcosanti](http://www.arcosanti.org/), established by architect Paolo Soleri in 1970. When I saw this place in the early 1980’s, it looked more like an eerie ghost town than functioning commune – albeit one with a very pricey gift shop. ---
**Author:** ![furt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/439d5e/32.png) [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/13 "2004-02-16T11:44:59Z")
[JPUSA](http://www.jpusa.org/jpusa/who.htm) was started by a bunch of 60s “Jesus Freaks.” ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/14 "2004-02-16T13:18:42Z")
The Twin Oaks folks are a terrific bunch of people. I’ve been up there a few times. ---
**Author:** ![Farmwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8dc957/32.png) [@Farmwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmwoman)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/15 "2004-02-16T15:04:31Z")
It seems that most of the long-lived communes have morphed into something like[EcoVillages.](http://gen.ecovillage.org/) We have a fairly successful [one](http://www.ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us/) in our backyard. (If one measures success by expansion.) Evidently, Ithaca, NY was a hotbed of commune living in the 60’s & 70’s. My therapist shared a story with me about one community in which the members were forbidden to share or even _think_ negative feelings or thoughts about other members. Of course I asked what became of them…actually, I think I said something like, “So, when did they implode?” She wasn’t amused. And here I was thinking her story had point. ---
**Author:** ![ready29003](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@ready29003](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ready29003)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/16 "2004-02-16T22:16:33Z")
I spent 3 weeks at Twin Oaks and it was an amazing experience. I highly recommend it. It has been around 37 years and is a strong healthy vibrant community. In case you care, here are my impressions why it is a unique, impressive, and enduring society: It is a diverse community. Everyone there certainly has a hippie slant, but the community has athiests, agnostics, new agies, and christians. It is a community built upon constant communication and consensus building. Although some members have no interest in group decision making, most members work very hard to find agreement on all major decisions. Twin Oaks has evolved a solid functional system for making decisions, resolving conflicts, and brainstorming ideas. It is a community built upon a system of sensible bylaws, and everyone works together accordingly. Although the commune has existed for 37 years, none of the original members have been there that entire time. One of the original members did return their after a long hiatus, and still lives their today to my knowledge. Other than her, there is a wonderful man named McCune who I believe has been there 25 years or something. My point is, the population changes, but the community continues and thrives. I loved my visit to Twin Oaks. Staying there is more exotic than visiting a foreign country in my opinion. It is more like visiting another culture on another planet. They have a number of industries, tons of community activities, a diverse eclectic fun loving group of people-and they all share 100% of the income the community earns. You cannot appreciate how different such a culture is without seeing it in person…and living it for a period of time… Anyways, that’s my response to the OP. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/17 "2004-02-16T23:42:07Z")
[Zendick Farms](http://www.zendik.org/home.html) is about twenty miles east of Austin, Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Ruiniform](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9de053/32.png) [@Ruiniform](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruiniform)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/18 "2004-02-17T01:41:11Z")
Yikes, everything about that Zendik place points to ‘creepy cult’, from their wacky assumed names to the fact that on weekends they go to various cities to “distribute information on the Zendik lifestyle” (…uh-huh…) to the fact that in their pictures, a majority seem to be wearing identical ‘Z’ necklaces. Have you ever come into contact with this commune? If so, is my intuition correct? ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/19 "2004-02-17T02:08:28Z")
You know, **Ruiniform** , I waffled around about posting my opinion and decided I didn’t know enough to make one. They’re as countercultural as they come, but they’ve gotten decent to neutral press over the years in the local paper, with a few articles quoting members who have gotten their lives straightened out after running away from home/being abused/living on the streets/etc./etc… I could see how the farm would profit from the cheap labor of messed up kids though. We had a kid from the farm visit our house one Christmas years ago to ask for donations (he _really_ wanted our extra christmas lights, so we gave them to him), and I knew a few friends of friends of the farm when I was younger. Predictably, these friends did lots of drugs and weren’t exactly on the path to greatness themselves. ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126/20 "2004-02-17T02:53:44Z")
Remember the HogFarm? There was one town somewhere way up in New Mexico, I read about it in one of Abbie’s books under the title The Town to High to Die. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-there-any-sucessful-hippie-communes/229126.md?page=2)