THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn: Hedwig Michel; Born: 29 Mar 1892, Frankfort, Germany; entered K.U. 22 Dec 1941.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready: "Came from Germany to join some years after Doctor's death. A capable, energetic person who did a great deal to rebuilding the store's business and engineered turning the Unity property over to the state to become the "Koreshan State Park."

SOCIAL SECURITY DEATH INDEX; United States; Vol 2: Hedwig Michel; Date of Birth: 29 March 1892; Date of death: August 1982 in Florida; SS#: 265-60-8655; Estero, Florida.

Burial: Buried on the grounds at the Koreshan State Historic Site, Inscription on stone: "One who made a difference," Hedwig Michel; Born at Frankfort am Main, Germany, 29 Mar 1892; Died: 5 Aug 1982; Member, President, Spiritual Leader of the K.U. 1944-1982. "You are building for future generations" "Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity."; Presented in loving memory by the people of Florida.

MEMORIES, MEMORIES--DAYS OF LONG AGO chronicled by Marie McCready with participation by Lovelle McCready: Hedwig Michel arrives in Estero.--Page 90 Laurie Bubbett, Hedwig Michel, Claude J. Rahn and Anne W. Lewis, on motion of Hedwig, seconded by Laurie and unanimously carried, it was decided to contact the proper state authorities about having the home grounds perpetuated as a memorial park.--Page 91.

BIO OF HEDWIG MICHEL: THE AMERICAN EAGLE, October 1993, Estero Florida; The Koreshan Story Continues--Hedwig Michel--The Last Koreshan by Sara Rea.
"Hedwig Michel was born in Frankfurt, Germany on March 29, 1892, the youngest of four children born to Ferdinand Michel, a professor of languages and scholar, and Emma Wertheimer Michel, an educator and historian. The Michels were devout orthodox Jews, but only their son was raised in the Jewish tradition. The three girls were not as strictly schooled in religion, but were well educated nonetheless. The Michels operated a boarding school in Frankfurt for some thirty years and were actively involved in the music and art of the city.
Hedwig's brother, Max, was an attorney and associated with the mayor of Frankfurt and the cultural aspects of the city. Her sister Elsa was a gifted artist, well-known for her beautiful ceramics, and sister Ida was an X-ray technician of some note in the early days of that scientific field. Hedwig had been trained for business, and she was a secretary of a high school for five years. She then became the manager of a corporation which promoted Frankfurt's municipal theaters, operas, plays, literature and the fine arts. She worked with Dr. William Steinberg to reorganize, and then managed, the Frankfurt Philharmonic Orchestra with from 40 to 60 professional musicians. Dr. Steinberg was the orchestra's principal conductor and did some conducting of both the Boston and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestras in later years. Hedwig arranged the orchestra's concert tours in more than 40 cities throughout Germany.
In her last three years in Germany, Hedwig operated and was headmistress of a boarding school situated in her own beautiful 19-room mansion. She heard about the Koreshans from an American teacher of English, Peter Bender, who Hedwig had hired for her school. He gave her Dr. Teed's book "Cellular Cosmogony" to read, and it fascinated her.
HEDWIG FINDS ESTERO. In 1940 Hedwig had to flee Nazi Germany. She attempted to bring her personal possessions with her and sent some twenty van loads of them on ahead. These were confiscated at the Belgian port of Antwerp, and Hedwig arrived in America virtually penniless. Her brother, Max, and his family were already living in New York, but as she and Max were not on the best of terms, she did not feel welcome there.
In New York Hedwig found a letter addressed to her from the Koreshan Unity management asking her to come to Estero. Apparently Peter Bender had notified the Koreshans of her impending arrival in the United States. Hedwig made contact with the Koreshan Unity soon after she read the letter, and on May 30th she came to Estero. By then Hedwig had made a vow to herself to be of help wherever needed without material gain as proof of her sincerest appreciation for the generosity of the United States Government in allowing foreigners the benefit of the freedom of their country.
FADING GLORY. At that time the Koreshan Unity membership had dwindled to 35 mostly elderly people. The buildings were in disrepair, gardens full of weeds, and the Koreshan store was in appalling condition. At first Hedwig stayed with a former member, and after the requisite six month trial period of living in the settlement she was accepted as a full-fledged member in December, 1941.
Hedwig often reminisced about her early days in the Unity. She said her first duty assignment was to clean the ladies' rest rooms in the newly-constructed Estero River Trailer Park, a task which she did not refuse. However, because of the lack of 24-hour electricity, the trailer parker could not go into operation at that time, so she never really had to follow through on that particular assignment. She was elected to the board in 1944 and became treasurer in 1945 and secretary in 1949.
While she did not do "rest room duty", Hedwig turned her energy to nursing the often-ailing residents. She was a healer, using old-time remedies and herbs which she had become familiar with in Germany during World War I days. She also sewed dresses for the three oldest members, Emma Norton (Dr. Teed's sister), Etta Silverfriend and Ida Fischer. She cared for Etta Silverfriend through Etta's terminal battle with breast cancer.
ROLLS UP HER SLEEVES. In 1942 Hedwig was asked by the board to reorganize the general store and put it on a profitable basis. Hedwig said she found $5.00 in unpaid bills due various wholesale houses and some $700 in bills owned the Unity by customers. The store was dirty, poorly stocked, and in total disarray. As she set about putting the store in order, she found help and support in Estero outside the Unity and mostly opposition from within. She learned that it was tradition to oppose the storekeeper because the members believed the storekeeper had access to the best food while they got "the rotten stuff".
Hedwig said she worked long hours, usually "from 8 in the morning to 10 at night". One of her regrets during those years was that it took so much of her time and energy she did not have a chance to socialize with the old members and really get to know them as she would have liked to. However, she never refused to see sick persons when called upon and treated them as best she could.
For a while, during a period when they did not have a cook, Hedwig cooked for 15 members in the back of the store during working hours. She was glad to be able to put some of her artistic talents to work from time to time. She was asked to come to the schoolhouse and help children with singing lessons by accompanying them on the piano. She also started a summer camp in the Trailer Park, supervising 18 children three times a week for play and exercise from 9 AM to 2 PM, and provided them with lunch.
THE ENTREPRENEUR. The American Red Cross presented Hedwig with an Award of Merit for conducting some of their fund campaigns during World War II. Ever looking for ways to earn money for the Unity, Hedwig became an agent for Tamiami Trail Tours in Estero and also established a Western Union Office there. She then sectioned off one side of the store building overlooking the river and put in a restaurant, specializing in fresh trout and hush puppies. Directly across the road from the store she had Standard Oil put in a gas station which was operated by the Koreshan Unity for several years.
It was in January, 1944 that Hedwig became a member of the Ecclesia, the governing council of the Koreshan Unity. She took over the management of the Planetary Court on March 8, 1944. The building was badly in need of cleaning, repair and remodeling. For many years various people had lived and died there, their old belongings left without care to succumb to the ravages of rats, bugs and the weather (wind and rain blew in). In those years it was called the "dead house", and the old members refused to live in it. And yet, when the board decided to install sanitary facilities in the Planetary Court, the old members were scandalized, declaring it was "immoral to put a toilet in the House". The remodeling went on, however, and Hedwig informed them the Planetary Court would be used as a guest house and she was sure that the "outsiders would not suffer under such an immorality".
In 1946 Allen Andrews, president of the Koreshan Unity, appointed Hedwig as treasurer when that office became vacant by the death of Frank Lewis. In August of that year, the store was remodeled, painted, and electric refrigerators were installed for food storage. The eight rooms above the store were set up as guest rooms and, with the advent of full-time electric power, the trailer park was put into operation.
Hedwig had far more vision and energy than the elderly group of Koreshans cared to deal with. They objected to many of the innovative programs Hedwig wanted to engage in, but she went ahead with a number of them. She also set about to restore the botanical gardens and the cultural programs and festivals that had been the keynote of the early Koreshan lifestyle. She wanted to revitalize the adult education programs, which Dr. Teed espoused at the turn of the century when adult education was unheard of.
AGAINST THE TIDE. After several fires which destroyed the publishing house and corporate offices, and floods which caused great damage, the Koreshan treasury was in dire straits. Hedwig was the last person officially admitted as a Unity member. As the old members died off the decline continued, and even Hedwig's valiant efforts could not stem the tide. In 1952 a directors' meeting was held to determine what would be the final fate of the Koreshan Unity.
Should the land be sold for development? Hedwig refused to even consider that. She insisted that some of the grounds be retained as an historical site open to the public. She felt Dr. Teed's dream of a "New Jerusalem" was not just a religious place but a peaceful haven in a natural setting where anyone could enjoy the beautiful, unspoiled land God had created along with the labor of creative minds. She had found this for herself in this lovely place in Estero and was eager to share it.
When Hedwig learned that Germany was prepared to make reparations for war losses, she traveled to Germany in 1954 to arrange for compensation and possibly a pension. These funds helped give the Koreshan Unity a new lease on life. They also enabled Hedwig to continue her struggle to have the Koreshan settlement become a state park. In 1961, during Governor Farris Bryant's tenure, the Koreshans' gift to the people became a reality. Their history was kept intact and became the Koreshan State Historic Site. More than 300 acres were deeded to the state, and it became a state park in 1967.
HER FINAL DAYS. In 1965 Hedwig resumed publication of the American Eagle, focusing on philosophy and the wise use of land and nature. She also wrote a column on gardening for the Fort Myers newspaper.
The final project Hedwig undertook was the building of the Koreshan Library-Museum across Highway 41 from the settlement in 1979. Here the large collection of books, papers and artifacts left by the Koreshans are stored, waiting to be made available for review by historians and scholars in years to come. In these one can find the vestiges of the ideas, ideals and dreams of these unusual people.
Hedwig was expected to move into the beautiful air-conditioned apartment on the second floor of the Library-Museum Building when it was completed. But she could not bring herself to leave the Koreshan Settlement where she had spent forty years of her life. She wanted to stay in "her garden" which she had created and so lovingly tended.
A party was given for Hedwig on her 90th birthday with many notable people and media representatives in attendance. At one point in the proceedings she was referred to as the "last Koreshan", and she responded firmly with, "There is no last. We shall continue."
However, later in that year of 1982, Hedwig Michel passed away in her sleep. Her tour of duty on this plane of life was done. And, as she had not wanted to leave "her garden" while she lived, she was not taken away after her death. She is the only Koreshan buried within the settlement, and her marker consists of a natural rock. Some people claim to see Hedwig's profile in the stone. She was indeed the last Koreshan officially accepted into the Unity and to live on the site of Dr. Teed's "New Jerusalem". But, as she said on her 90th birthday, "We shall continue."