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{{Short description|American freethought writer (1818–1882)}}

{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett
| name = DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett
| image = D. M. Bennett.png
| image = De Robigne Mortimer Bennett circa 1873.jpg
|birth_date = December 23, 1818
| birth_date = December 23, 1818
|birth_place = [[Springfield, New York]]
| birth_place = [[Springfield, New York]], US
|death_date = December 6, 1882
| death_date = {{dda|1882|12|6|1818|12|23}}
|death_place = [[Manhattan]]
| death_place = [[Manhattan]], New York, US
| occupation = [[Freethought]] writer, [[journalist]]}}
| occupation = [[Freethought]] writer, editor, publisher
}}
⚫
[[File:Green-Wood 2022-03 c jeh.jpg|thumb|upright|Tomb in Brooklyn]]


⚫
'''DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett''' (December 23, 1818 – December 6, 1882), best known as '''D.M. Bennett''', was an American writer and publisher who was the founder of ''[[The Truth Seeker]]'', a radical [[freethought]] and reform American periodical.
⚫
[[File:DM Bennett, Atheist tomb, Green Park Cemetery, Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY 5 1.jpg|thumb|upright|Tomb in Brooklyn]]

⚫
'''DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett''' (December 23, 1818 – December 6, 1882), best known as '''D. M. Bennett''' was the founder and publisher of ''[[Truth Seeker]]'', a radical [[freethought]] and reform American periodical.<ref>{{cite web|title=D. M. Bennett|work=findagrave.com|url=https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11768082}}</ref>


==Biography==
==Biography==


===Shaker life===
⚫
Bennett was a devout member of the [[Shakers]] for 13 years before evolving into a "freethinker", founding the ''Truth Seeker'' newspaper in 1873.<ref>{{cite web|title=D. M. Bennett|author=Roderick Bradford|url=http://mysite.verizon.net/vzentr3r/thetruthseekerdmbennett/id11.html}}</ref> In 1878, Bennett wrote that "[[Jesuism]]", rather than [[Pauline Christianity]], was the gospel taught by [[Saint Peter|Peter]], [[John the Apostle|John]] and [[James, brother of Jesus|James]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Champions of the Church: Their crimes and persecutions|author=D. M. Bennett|url=https://archive.org/stream/championsofchurc00benn#page/84/mode/2up|page=84|quote=The Progress of Jesuism}}</ref>
Derobigne M. Bennett and his sister, Letsy Ann, were admitted as [[Shakers]] in New Lebanon, New York, in 1834.<ref>New Lebanon Church Family Vital Records, Western Reserve Historical Society Shaker ms. III:B-14b.</ref> Living in the Church Family's First Order, he worked as a shoemaker, boys' caretaker, herbalist, physician, and scribe, writing part of the Journal of Inspirational Meetings in 1840 before his questioning nature became evident.<ref>Derobigne Bennett and Isaac Newton Youngs, Journal of Inspirational Meetings (1840-1841), Western Reserve Historical Society Shaker ms. VIII:B-138.</ref> His life with the [[Shakers]] ended in 1846 when he eloped with Mary Wicks at the same time his sister Letsy Ann Bennett eloped with John Allen, all four of them slipping away from the Shaker village unnoticed.<ref>Isaac Newton Youngs, Domestic Journal of Daily Occurances (1834-46) [New Lebanon], New York State Library, Albany, New York, Manuscripts and Special Collections, Shaker Collection</ref>

===Freethinker===
⚫
After leaving the Shakers, Bennett evolved into a "freethinker", founding ''The'' ''Truth Seeker'' newspaper with his wife Mary Wicks Bennett in 1873.<ref>{{cite web |title= D. M. Bennett |first= Roderick |last= Bradford |url= http://mysite.verizon.net/vzentr3r/thetruthseekerdmbennett/id11.html |access-date= 2011-09-20 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121018003128/http://mysite.verizon.net/vzentr3r/thetruthseekerdmbennett/id11.html |archive-date= 2012-10-18 |url-status= dead }}</ref> In 1878, Bennett wrote that "[[Jesuism]]", rather than [[Pauline Christianity]], was the gospel taught by [[Saint Peter|Peter]], [[John the Apostle|John]] and [[James, brother of Jesus|James]].<ref>{{cite book|title= The Champions of the Church: Their crimes and persecutions| first =D. M. | last = Bennett |chapter-url= https://archive.org/stream/championsofchurc00benn#page/84/mode/2up |page=84| chapter =The Progress of Jesuism| year =1878 | publisher =New York, D. M. Bennett }}</ref>


On 1 September 1873, D.M. and M.W. Bennett released the first tabloid edition of ''Truth Seeker''. Its masthead announced its purpose as follows: <br>
On 1 September 1873, D. M. and M. W. Bennett released the first tabloid edition of ''The Truth Seeker''. Its masthead announced its purpose:
"Devoted to: science, morals, free thought, free discussions, liberalism, sexual equality, labor reform, progression, free education and whatever tends to elevate and emancipate the human race." <br>
{{Blockquote|<p>Devoted to: science, morals, free thought, free discussions, liberalism, sexual equality, labor reform, progression, free education and whatever tends to elevate and emancipate the human race.</p>
"Opposed to: priestcraft, ecclesiasticism, dogmas, creeds, false theology, superstition, bigotry, ignorance, monopolies, aristocracies, privileged classes, tyranny, oppression, and everything that degrades or burdens mankind mentally or physically." <ref>{{cite web|title=Truth Seeker Journal|author=Truth Seeker |ISSN= 0041-3712 |url=http://www.truthseeker.com/journals.htm}}</ref> ''Truth Seeker'' was extreme for its times, and it persists to this day though in self-resuscitating form.
<p>Opposed to: priestcraft, ecclesiasticism, dogmas, creeds, false theology, superstition, bigotry, ignorance, monopolies, aristocracies, privileged classes, tyranny, oppression, and everything that degrades or burdens mankind mentally or physically.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Truth Seeker Journal |journal=A Truth Seeker Supplement|issn=0041-3712|url= http://www.truthseeker.com/journals.htm |access-date= 2012-11-06|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121111003532/http://www.truthseeker.com/journals.htm|archive-date=2012-11-11|url-status=dead}}</ref></p>}}
.
⚫
D.M. Bennett is interred at [[Green-Wood Cemetery]] in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]]. His monument, erected by his fellow freethinkers, is covered with his statements.
[[File:The D.M. Bennett Monument in Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York.jpg|thumb|Roderick Bradford at the D.M. Bennett Monument in Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York. April, 1995.]]
⚫
D.M. Bennett is interred at [[Green-Wood Cemetery]] in [[Brooklyn]], New York. His monument, erected by his fellow freethinkers, is covered with his statements.


Bennett was the subject of the biography ''D. M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker'' (2006) by Roderick Bradford and a 2009 documentary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Truth Seeker D. M. Bennett|url=http://www.theosophyforward.com/index.php/theosophy-and-the-society-in-the-public-eye/152-truth-seeker-d-m-bennett.html}}</ref>
Bennett was the subject of the biography ''D.M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker'' (2006) by Roderick Bradford and a 2009 documentary.<ref>{{cite web | work = Theosophy forward |title= Truth Seeker D.M. Bennett|date= 24 December 2009|url= http://www.theosophyforward.com/index.php/theosophy-and-the-society-in-the-public-eye/152-truth-seeker-d-m-bennett.html}}</ref>


==Obscenity prosecution==
==Obscenity prosecution==
United States Postal Inspector [[Anthony Comstock]] had Bennett arrested on December 10, 1878, for mailing ''[[Cupid's Yokes]]'', a free-love pamphlet. Bennett was prosecuted, subjected to a widely publicized trial, and imprisoned in the Albany Penitentiary for thirteen months, in which his health greatly suffered. Despite a strong campaign in his favor for President [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] to pardon him, Hayes declined, pardoning the actual author ([[Ezra Heywood]]) instead.<ref>[http://churchandstate.org.uk/2016/11/d-m-bennett-pardon-campaign/ D. M. Bennett Pardon Campaign, Church and State UK]</ref>
United States Postal Inspector [[Anthony Comstock]] had Bennett arrested on December 10, 1878, for mailing ''[[Cupid's Yokes]]'', a [[free love]] pamphlet. Bennett was prosecuted, subjected to a widely publicized trial, and imprisoned in the [[Albany Penitentiary]] for 11 months, during which his health greatly suffered. Despite a strong campaign in his favor for President [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] to pardon him, Hayes declined, pardoning the actual author ([[Ezra Heywood]]) instead.<ref>[http://churchandstate.org.uk/2016/11/d-m-bennett-pardon-campaign/ D.M. Bennett Pardon Campaign, Church and State UK]{{Dead link|date=November 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>


==Publications==
==Publications==
Line 44: Line 52:


==Further reading==
==Further reading==
*Bradford, Roderick (2006). ''D. M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker'' (New York: Prometheus Books). {{ISBN|1-59102-430-7}}
*Bradford, Roderick (2006). ''D.M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker'' (New York: Prometheus Books). {{ISBN|1-59102-430-7}}
*Jacoby, Susan (2004). ''Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism'' (New York: Metropolitan Books). {{ISBN|0-8050-7442-2}}
*Jacoby, Susan (2004). ''Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism'' (New York: Metropolitan Books). {{ISBN|0-8050-7442-2}}


==External links==
==External links==
* [http://vimeo.com/10514808 D. M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker] (2009) - 1 hour video documentary by Roderick Bradford
* [http://vimeo.com/10514808 D.M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker] (2009) - 1 hour video documentary by Roderick Bradford
* [http://www.truthseeker.com/journals.htm ''The Truth Seeker'']
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20121111003532/http://www.truthseeker.com/journals.htm ''The Truth Seeker'']
* [http://www.green-wood.com/burial_results/index.php Green-Wood Cemetery Burial Search]
* [http://www.green-wood.com/burial_results/index.php Green-Wood Cemetery Burial Search]


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, D. M.}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, D.M.}}
[[Category:1818 births]]
[[Category:1818 births]]
[[Category:1882 deaths]]
[[Category:1882 deaths]]
[[Category:American secularists]]
[[Category:American critics of religions]]
[[Category:Freethought writers]]
[[Category:Freethought writers]]
[[Category:Shakers]]
[[Category:Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery]]
[[Category:Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery]]
[[Category:19th-century American newspaper publishers (people)]]
[[Category:19th-century American newspaper publishers (people)]]
[[Category:19th-century American journalists]]
[[Category:19th-century American male writers]]
[[Category:American male journalists]]
[[Category:Former Shakers]]
[[Category:19th-century male writers]]

Latest revision as of 10:39, 10 November 2024

DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett
BornDecember 23, 1818
Springfield, New York, US
DiedDecember 6, 1882(1882-12-06) (aged 63)
Manhattan, New York, US
Occupation(s)Freethought writer, editor, publisher
Tomb in Brooklyn

DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett (December 23, 1818 – December 6, 1882), best known as D.M. Bennett, was an American writer and publisher who was the founder of The Truth Seeker, a radical freethought and reform American periodical.

Biography

[edit]

Shaker life

[edit]

Derobigne M. Bennett and his sister, Letsy Ann, were admitted as Shakers in New Lebanon, New York, in 1834.[1] Living in the Church Family's First Order, he worked as a shoemaker, boys' caretaker, herbalist, physician, and scribe, writing part of the Journal of Inspirational Meetings in 1840 before his questioning nature became evident.[2] His life with the Shakers ended in 1846 when he eloped with Mary Wicks at the same time his sister Letsy Ann Bennett eloped with John Allen, all four of them slipping away from the Shaker village unnoticed.[3]

Freethinker

[edit]

After leaving the Shakers, Bennett evolved into a "freethinker", founding The Truth Seeker newspaper with his wife Mary Wicks Bennett in 1873.[4] In 1878, Bennett wrote that "Jesuism", rather than Pauline Christianity, was the gospel taught by Peter, John and James.[5]

On 1 September 1873, D. M. and M. W. Bennett released the first tabloid edition of The Truth Seeker. Its masthead announced its purpose:

Devoted to: science, morals, free thought, free discussions, liberalism, sexual equality, labor reform, progression, free education and whatever tends to elevate and emancipate the human race.

Opposed to: priestcraft, ecclesiasticism, dogmas, creeds, false theology, superstition, bigotry, ignorance, monopolies, aristocracies, privileged classes, tyranny, oppression, and everything that degrades or burdens mankind mentally or physically.[6]

.

Roderick Bradford at the D.M. Bennett Monument in Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York. April, 1995.

D.M. Bennett is interred at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. His monument, erected by his fellow freethinkers, is covered with his statements.

Bennett was the subject of the biography D.M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker (2006) by Roderick Bradford and a 2009 documentary.[7]

Obscenity prosecution

[edit]

United States Postal Inspector Anthony Comstock had Bennett arrested on December 10, 1878, for mailing Cupid's Yokes, a free love pamphlet. Bennett was prosecuted, subjected to a widely publicized trial, and imprisoned in the Albany Penitentiary for 11 months, during which his health greatly suffered. Despite a strong campaign in his favor for President Rutherford B. Hayes to pardon him, Hayes declined, pardoning the actual author (Ezra Heywood) instead.[8]

Publications

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery: New York's Buried Treasure by Jeffrey I. Richman
  1. ^ New Lebanon Church Family Vital Records, Western Reserve Historical Society Shaker ms. III:B-14b.
  2. ^ Derobigne Bennett and Isaac Newton Youngs, Journal of Inspirational Meetings (1840-1841), Western Reserve Historical Society Shaker ms. VIII:B-138.
  3. ^ Isaac Newton Youngs, Domestic Journal of Daily Occurances (1834-46) [New Lebanon], New York State Library, Albany, New York, Manuscripts and Special Collections, Shaker Collection
  4. ^ Bradford, Roderick. "D. M. Bennett". Archived from the original on 2012-10-18. Retrieved 2011-09-20.
  5. ^ Bennett, D. M. (1878). "The Progress of Jesuism". The Champions of the Church: Their crimes and persecutions. New York, D. M. Bennett. p. 84.
  6. ^ "Truth Seeker Journal". A Truth Seeker Supplement. ISSN 0041-3712. Archived from the original on 2012-11-11. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
  7. ^ "Truth Seeker D.M. Bennett". Theosophy forward. 24 December 2009.
  8. ^ D.M. Bennett Pardon Campaign, Church and State UK[permanent dead link‍]

Further reading

[edit]
  • Bradford, Roderick (2006). D.M. Bennett: The Truth Seeker (New York: Prometheus Books). ISBN 1-59102-430-7
  • Jacoby, Susan (2004). Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism (New York: Metropolitan Books). ISBN 0-8050-7442-2
[edit]
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