18
There was one suicide on Poland Hill, a Samuel Morrill, who died
in 1829 at the age of 51. "He mysteriously disappeared and, as
he was known to be partially insane, great pains was taken to
find him, but all to no purpose until the latter part of June
1830. James Wakefield and Archibald, his brother, were out in
the woods east of the Poland Family's turning mill, gunning.
They accidentally came across his body and saw that he committed
suicide by hanging as the rope was still suspended from the tree
where he fastened it. An inquest was held the next day and the
Coroner brought in a verdict in accordance with the facts demon-
strated. The remains were buried on the spot."

In June 1897, Georgianna Regetta Dorrington, aged 14, of the
Church Family, walked in Sabbathday Lake. "She seemed to have
been depressed and ended it all."

Scott DeWolfe informs me that "the Second Elder at Poland Hill
went insane and ended up living as a hermit on the shores of a
nearby pond." Also a Trustee named Nelson Chase (originally from
Enfield, N.H.) went insane and left to go found a community in
California. He did not make it very far and a couple of years
later his body was brought back to Sabbathday Lake for burial."


SAVOY, MASS.

I am indebted to David Newell for his research into this short-
lived community. It was gathered in 1817 and discontinued in
late 1821. Perhaps the reason was that "the vast majority of the
Savoy Believers were the children and grandchildren of two
closely related families - that of Nathaniel Lewis Sr. and wife
Candace, and of James Cornell and his wife Submit. Candace and
Submit were Pierces and sisters." Nathaniel Sr. Was a leading
figure in the waves of revivalism that swept over this area prior
to the arrival of the Shaker missionaries and Nathaniel Jr. was
at the head of this revival and appointed as a ^preacher and
elder' about 1815 or 1816. "The religious body that Calvin Green
encountered in January 1817 was headed by Nathaniel Jr. and one
^Square Copely' (later renamed by the Shakers as Ezekiel) and
numbered nearly 100 souls including children. Conversions to
Shakerism came fast and most of this body confessed their sins
and embraced the Shaker faith that winter. Nathaniel Jr. had a
difficult time with the Shaker faith and held out for some time,
'wanting to be somebody' (says Green) and unwilling to give up
Ahis advancing prospects'. He did eventually convert - well
after his wife Sally, and appears to have been an unsteady
Believer and had many trials with his new faith. We know very