The beard-wearing, barn-storming, baseball-playing cult that wowed America

The Israelite House of David was formed in 1903 in Michigan, living on a compound they formed a baseball side able to compete with all comers. This bearded team became the biggest show in baseball.

Formed by Benjamin and Mary Purnell, the group would follow the teachings of James Jershom Jezreel who had a strange and unique interpretation of Christianity, believing the word of an Englishwoman, Joanna Southcott who had lived a century earlier that she was a prophetess, per the Israelite House of David website.

After the Purnells started the group, people began to flock to their commune, by 1907 there were hundreds of members who lived on a 1,000-acre commune which included everything you would need to remain self-sufficient.

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Throughout his life, Benjamin Purnell was always fascinated by sports and encouraged his followers to play whatever they could to maintain their healthy lifestyles. His passion, though, was for baseball.

Within a few years, Purnell realized his followers were incredibly talented and would be able to compete with most teams in the country. By 1913 they had become a fully-fledged competitive team and would go on the road, playing anyone who would challenge them, per the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Initially motivated by the desire to stay fit, the baseball team soon started drawing huge crowds and Purnell realized they could provide much-needed cash for their commune.

During the 1920s, the House of David team became so good they were competing against teams from the major leagues and required some added talent to stay competitive, enlisting professional players like, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Satchel Paige, and Mordecai Brown.

These professionals wold often grow out their hair and beards to show respect for their employers. At one point even the great Babe Ruth played as a guest for the House of David, donning a fake beard.

The touring team became famous not only for their skills but for inventing ‘pepper’ baseball, which involved hidden ball tricks (sometimes in their beards) and slick juggling moves – a baseballing Harlem Globetrotters they almost became!

The early 20th century was a tumultuous time for race relations in the US, but the House of David side showed no prejudice and would happily take on all black teams from the Negro Leagues, breaking from the usually segregated conventions of the sport. At one point they even had a Black House of David side, per American Heritage.

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The team attracted fans for various reasons, their distinct looks, their fun playing style, but also because they could go toe-to-toe with almost any team in the country and often came out on top, even against the pros.

With popularity rising, the House of David at one point had three teams on the road at once, seeing this as the best way to increase profits and spread their religious doctrine as far and as wide as they could.

As with many cults, there is often a dark side to the story and the House of David is no different. In the 1920s, founder Benjamin Purnell was accused by 15 women of sexual activity with them as minors. Despite mountains of evidence, Purnell escaped these charges but would be convicted of fraud, dying of tuberculosis before sentencing could take place.

After Benjamin’s death, the cult split in two, one was led by Mary Purnell, named Mary's City of David, and the other was led by Judge T. H. Dewhirst who had previously been on the Council of Elders, his group was named Old House of David.

Despite the split, the baseball teams remained, touring the country well into the 1950s, but given the controversy around the group and Major League Baseball’s rising popularity, touring teams became far less popular, leaving the House of David without their most reliable income.

Surprisingly, there are still some members of the House of David alive to this day, with some still living at the original commune in Michigan, according to the group's website.

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