Bouck White
Encyclopedia
Bouck White born Charles Browning White, was a Congregational
minister
, an American
socialist
, a Jesusist
, an author, a potter, and a recluse.
, Schoharie County, New York
, the son of Charles Addison and Mary (Bouck) White. White used Middleburgh as background in his book The Mixing (1913) and described the thinly-veiled residents as, "degenerative Dutchmen." Middleburgh residents sued and retorted that White was "a male child born some years ago in the village, whose early stupidity gave no indication of his future precocity."
in 1894, studied journalism, and graduated in 1896 (A.B.). He worked as a reporter for the Springfield Republican, received his "call," and attended Boston Theological Seminary. In 1902 he graduated from Union Theological Seminary
of New York City
. and worked as a minister in the Ramapo Mountains near West Point. He published his first book, Quo vaditis?: A call to the old moralities in 1903. A typical selection shows that, from the beginning, he was against the money-making spirit in the land. "I have seen a People crazed with new-got riches, a drunk-headed People, a People giddied with great possessions. A wildness was upon them, but it was not a wildness for the desirables of life."
After a year at Ramapo he became pastor of the Congregational Church of the Thousand Islands at Clayton, New York the next three years. White was ordained a Congregational
minister
in 1904. He then accepted the position of head of the Men's Social Service department in Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Brooklyn, where he remained until he was dismissed in 1913.
" starring Cary Grant
, Edward Arnold
, and Frances Farmer
was based on this book and is currently available on DVD.http://www.carygrant.net/reviews/toast.html The Call of the Carpenter (1911), which portrayed Jesus of Nazareth as a workingman, agitator, and social revolutionist, went too far and caused his dismissal from Holy Trinity. White formed his own church, "The Church of the Social Revolution," and Eugene V. Debs
observed that White was "the only Christian minister" in New York. In The Carpenter and the Rich Man (1914) "Bouck White shows in vivid and absorbing fashion Jesus as the leader of the great proletarian surge of his time. The immorality of being rich when other people are poor, is the keynote of this book, and the author bases it on the message of the Carpenter as found in the parables."
A member of the Socialist Party of America
until he was removed because of his religious beliefs, White appeared (May 10, 1914) at a service of the church to which the Rockefeller family
belonged, in order to discuss the question, "Did Jesus
teach the immorality of being rich?". He was arrested on the charge of disorderly conduct and three days later he was sentenced to six months on Blackwells Island. Because of his success at converting the workhouse prisoners there to Socialism, he was transferred to the more isolated Queens County Jail. Upton Sinclair
had a letter published in The New York Times
urging White's followers to work for his release, and referred to "Bouck White as 'Jesus,' to the Magistrate who convicted him as 'Pilate,' to the Calvary Baptist Church as 'the temple,'...http://radicalarchives.org/2009/04/20/bouck-white/.
For desecrating the national flag
, even though he claimed it was part of a religious ceremony and several flags from other countries were burned at the same time as a call for international botherhood, he was again sent to prison in 1916.
, Ulster County
, NY. Because he mistreated her, the local residents tarred and feathered him. The marriage was annulled and White left for Vermont in the summer of 1921. He eventually moved to New Scotland
, Albany County, NY in the Helderberg Mountains area, and with the help of two Swedish brothers, he built by hand a primitive castle out of local limestone in the mid 1930s. He referred to his buildings as "Federalburg" and "The Spirit of the Helderbergs," but local residents called it the "Helderberg Castle." He made a living selling "Bouckware" pottery with a new glazing technique that required no heat. Fire destroyed his living quarters at the castle in 1940, and in 1944 White suffered a stroke that forced him to enter the Home for Aged Men in Menands where he died in 1951.
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
minister
Minister of religion
In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community...
, an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, a Jesusist
Jesusism
Jesuism is the personal philosophy encompassing the moral teachings of Jesus of Nazareth and commitment or adherence to those teachings. Jesuism is distinct from and sometimes opposed to mainstream Christianity. In particular, the term is often contrasted with the theology attributed to Paul of...
, an author, a potter, and a recluse.
Early years
Bouck White was born at MiddleburghMiddleburgh (town), New York
Middleburgh is a town in Schoharie County, New York, USA. The population was 3,515 at the 2000 census.The Town of Middleburgh contains a village called Middleburgh...
, Schoharie County, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, the son of Charles Addison and Mary (Bouck) White. White used Middleburgh as background in his book The Mixing (1913) and described the thinly-veiled residents as, "degenerative Dutchmen." Middleburgh residents sued and retorted that White was "a male child born some years ago in the village, whose early stupidity gave no indication of his future precocity."
Education
After graduating from Middleburgh High School, he entered Harvard CollegeHarvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
in 1894, studied journalism, and graduated in 1896 (A.B.). He worked as a reporter for the Springfield Republican, received his "call," and attended Boston Theological Seminary. In 1902 he graduated from Union Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...
of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. and worked as a minister in the Ramapo Mountains near West Point. He published his first book, Quo vaditis?: A call to the old moralities in 1903. A typical selection shows that, from the beginning, he was against the money-making spirit in the land. "I have seen a People crazed with new-got riches, a drunk-headed People, a People giddied with great possessions. A wildness was upon them, but it was not a wildness for the desirables of life."
After a year at Ramapo he became pastor of the Congregational Church of the Thousand Islands at Clayton, New York the next three years. White was ordained a Congregational
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
minister
Minister of religion
In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community...
in 1904. He then accepted the position of head of the Men's Social Service department in Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Brooklyn, where he remained until he was dismissed in 1913.
Socialist Activities
While at Holy Trinity, White worked on several books. The Book of Daniel Drew (1910) was "A Study in the Psychology of Wall Street. A fascinating story of the mental evasions and feats of ethical juggling of one hopelessly caught in the system." The 1937 movie, "The Toast of New YorkThe Toast of New York
The Toast of New York is a 1937 American biopic starring Edward Arnold, Cary Grant, Frances Farmer, and Jack Oakie. The film is a fictionalized account of the lives of financiers James Fisk and Edward S. Stokes...
" starring Cary Grant
Cary Grant
Archibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
, Edward Arnold
Edward Arnold (actor)
Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
, and Frances Farmer
Frances Farmer
Frances Elena Farmer was an American actress of stage and screen. She is perhaps better known for sensationalized and fictional accounts of her life, and especially her involuntary commitment to a mental hospital...
was based on this book and is currently available on DVD.http://www.carygrant.net/reviews/toast.html The Call of the Carpenter (1911), which portrayed Jesus of Nazareth as a workingman, agitator, and social revolutionist, went too far and caused his dismissal from Holy Trinity. White formed his own church, "The Church of the Social Revolution," and Eugene V. Debs
Eugene V. Debs
Eugene Victor Debs was an American union leader, one of the founding members of the International Labor Union and the Industrial Workers of the World , and several times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States...
observed that White was "the only Christian minister" in New York. In The Carpenter and the Rich Man (1914) "Bouck White shows in vivid and absorbing fashion Jesus as the leader of the great proletarian surge of his time. The immorality of being rich when other people are poor, is the keynote of this book, and the author bases it on the message of the Carpenter as found in the parables."
A member of the Socialist Party of America
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
until he was removed because of his religious beliefs, White appeared (May 10, 1914) at a service of the church to which the Rockefeller family
Rockefeller family
The Rockefeller family , the Cleveland family of John D. Rockefeller and his brother William Rockefeller , is an American industrial, banking, and political family of German origin that made one of the world's largest private fortunes in the oil business during the late 19th and early 20th...
belonged, in order to discuss the question, "Did Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
teach the immorality of being rich?". He was arrested on the charge of disorderly conduct and three days later he was sentenced to six months on Blackwells Island. Because of his success at converting the workhouse prisoners there to Socialism, he was transferred to the more isolated Queens County Jail. Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. , was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle . It exposed conditions in the U.S...
had a letter published in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
urging White's followers to work for his release, and referred to "Bouck White as 'Jesus,' to the Magistrate who convicted him as 'Pilate,' to the Calvary Baptist Church as 'the temple,'...http://radicalarchives.org/2009/04/20/bouck-white/.
Creed
After he was released, he published Letters from Prison (1915) which contained his creed:I believe in God, the Master most mighty, stirrer-up
of Heaven and earth. And in Jesus the Carpenter of Nazareth, who was born of proletarian Mary, toiled at the work bench, descended into labor's hell, suffered under Roman tyranny at the hands of Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. The Power not ourselves which makes for freedom, he rose again from the dead to be lord of the democratic advance, sworn foe of stagnancy, maker of folk upheavals. I believe in work, the self-respecting toiler, the holiness of beauty, freeborn producers, the communion of comrades, the resurrection of workers, and the industrial commonwealth, the cooperative kingdom eternal."
For desecrating the national flag
Flag of the United States
The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars alternating with rows...
, even though he claimed it was part of a religious ceremony and several flags from other countries were burned at the same time as a call for international botherhood, he was again sent to prison in 1916.
Later life
White left for Europe, to either learn more about pottery-making or as a war correspondent, and married Andree Emilie Simon, a 19-year-old girl he brought back to his primitive home in MarlboroMarlboro, New York
Marlboro is a hamlet in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 2,339 at the 2000 census.Marlboro is in the southeast part of the Town of Marlborough and also the southeast corner of Ulster County.- History :...
, Ulster County
Ulster County, New York
Ulster County is a county located in the state of New York, USA. It sits in the state's Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 182,493. Recent population estimates completed by the United States Census Bureau for the 12-month period ending July 1 are at...
, NY. Because he mistreated her, the local residents tarred and feathered him. The marriage was annulled and White left for Vermont in the summer of 1921. He eventually moved to New Scotland
New Scotland, New York
New Scotland is a town in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 8,648 at the 2010 census.The town is southwest of Albany, New York, the state capital. New Scotland is centrally located in the county.-History:...
, Albany County, NY in the Helderberg Mountains area, and with the help of two Swedish brothers, he built by hand a primitive castle out of local limestone in the mid 1930s. He referred to his buildings as "Federalburg" and "The Spirit of the Helderbergs," but local residents called it the "Helderberg Castle." He made a living selling "Bouckware" pottery with a new glazing technique that required no heat. Fire destroyed his living quarters at the castle in 1940, and in 1944 White suffered a stroke that forced him to enter the Home for Aged Men in Menands where he died in 1951.
"Bouck White drifted through the Methodist Episcopal ministry, the Congregational ministry, and a stint as an Episcopalian lay youth worker, before founding the Church of the Social Revolution and exasperating all socialist and ecclesiastical organizations he encountered, before descending into notorious eccentricities in the mountains outside Albany, New York."