Altruria

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Altruria was a short-lived Utopian commune in Sonoma County, California based on Christian socialist principles and inspired by William Dean Howells's 1894 novel, A Traveler from Altruria.

Founded by Unitarian minister Edward Biron Payne and thirty of his followers near Santa Rosa in October 1894, Altruria prospered only for a few months. The Altrurians kept orchards and gardens and sold their produce in a shop in San Francisco, whose manager was Job Harriman.

The group published the magazine the Altrurian, which informed its supporters of the colony and sought to promote its ideals and the formation of Altrurian clubs. Several such clubs were created in the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas. It also started a project of a hotel on the community's property. Poor management, coupled with lack of funds because of the hotel project, caused the group to implement a reorganization plan to avoid bankruptcy only one year after the group was founded. At the same time, the group founded two new locations. The financial problems proved insurmountable, however, and all the locations were abandoned in 1896.