The Kingdom of Matthias: A Story of Sex and Salvation in 19th Century America

By March 1834, Ann Folger was pregnant with Matthews’s child. Another family, the Thompsons, briefly joined the Kingdom but Mr. Thompson soon grew leery of the practice of wife-swapping: Benjamin Folger had eyed Thompson’s wife, even though Folger was still having engaging in sexual acts with Ann and was married to Catherine Galloway. Thompson and his family left Mount Zion.

Benjamin Folger became convinced that Matthews was a fraud, and he confronted Matthews and demanded his wife back. Matthews refused, and when Benjamin threatened Matthews, Ann managed to ease the tensions between the two men.

In the meantime, rumors about the goings-on at Mount Zion spread. An area man pretended to be a constable and appeared at Mount Zion with a phony arrest warrant for Matthews, who shaved his beard and fled to Manhattan to avoid arrest.

Pierson’s health declined. Afflicted by frequent seizures and depression, exacerbated by his lack of a match spirit and consequent loneliness, Pierson declared himself the new Father of the Kingdom after Matthews’s escape to Manhattan. The congregation rejected Pierson. The group traveled to Manhattan in search of their leader, and soon, a dejected Pierson followed. In Manhattan, after eating blackberries, Pierson experienced another seizure. Matthews refused to allow Pierson to receive medical attention, and Pierson died on August 5th. Unsympathetic and disapproving, Matthews claimed that Pierson died because he lacked faith:

Matthias vented his most awful rages on those who got sick, for sickness was a sure sign of disobedience. Matthias…insisted that sick people harbored detached spirits, or devils; blind men had blind devils, cripples had limping devils, and so on. Matthias could cast out these devils, and sometimes did so. But his usual response to sickness in his house was rage (112-13).

The coroner concluded that Pierson died of natural causes, and no autopsy was performed. Soon after Pierson’s death, Matthews was forced to relinquish control of Mount Zion to Pierson's heirs. Many members of the outside community believed rumors that Matthews and his servant Isabella Van Wagenen had murdered Pierson. Responding to public demand, authorities exhumed Pierson’s body, and two doctors examined the contents of his stomach. They concluded that Pierson’s death was not due to natural causes: Pierson was poisoned.

The Kingdom quickly disintegrated after Pierson’s death, as Benjamin Folger continued to stir up public opinion against Matthews and the Kingdom. By this time, Folger and Ann have rekindled their relationship. Ann, who was also having sex with Matthews, told him know that Benjamin was a better lover, and Matthews responded to the insult by calling her a harlot. Folger determined to rid themselves of Matthews for good, and on the pretext of providing Matthews with funds to establish a new Kingdom in the West, Benjamin gave Matthews $630 in paper money and gold coins. After Matthews left, Benjamin called the police, claiming that Matthews stole the money. An arrest warrant was issued for Matthews, and he was detained in Albany, where he was visiting his wife Margaret. Matthews was formally charged with embezzlement and fraud, and charges for the murder of Pierson were added later.

When Matthews was arrested, the police found some of the money Folger claimed he stole, as well as a collection of fine linen shirts, silk stockings and handkerchiefs, a gold watch, and frock coats embroidered in gold and silver. They also found a “Jesus Matthias” nightcap embroidered with the names of the Twelve Apostles, and another nightcap, nearly identical to the first, containing the names of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.