Harriet Hayes Skinner

Harriet Hayes Skinner (née Noyes; July 5, 1817 – September 8, 1893) was an American writer, editor, and religious communalist. Born into the prominent Noyes and Hayes families, she supported the religious views of her brother, John Humphrey Noyes, founder of the Oneida Community. Skinner joined the Putney Association and later the Oneida Community, where she was active in both intellectual and domestic roles. She contributed to Perfectionist publications, served as editor of the Oneida Circular, and taught composition and spelling within the community. Skinner authored the vegetarian cookbook Oneida Community Cooking (1873), which documented the community's food practices and promoted the use of fresh, local ingredients. She advocated for the community's principle of free love, which she viewed as a means of promoting moral growth and social cohesion.