Quotes about William Keil from Beaver County, Pennsylvania, History Book

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In the book History of Beaver County, Pennsylvania and Its Centennial Celebration by Joseph Henderson Bausman (1904) Volume II, pp.799-800, on page 799, it says the following: "A remarkable instance of religious fanaticism is given in an occurrence which took place here (Monaca, Pennsylvania) in the spring of 1846, when a man from Ohio, named Keil, proclaimed himself as the Christ, and announced that he would be crucified on a certain day. This man was in no way connected with Count de Leon, though (page 800) the popular tradition has always represented him as one of the followers of that celebrity. The crucifixion was actually arranged for in all its details, the cross being made and the hole for it dug on the hillside just above the present P. & L. E. Railway trestle, to the west of the town, on the farm of George Frank, now of the estate of Dr. W. G. Taylor's heirs. It was on a warm Sunday morning, the town was crowded with people, and the excitement was intense. But the false Christ disappointed the multitude, and, with some of his deluded disciples, who had been seceders from the Harmony Society, fled to Oregon, where he died." Geneisner (talk) 11:38, 1 March 2011 (UTC)Reply