Koresh, also known as Cyrus Reed Teed (1839-1906), believed the earth was hollow and that people lived inside its interior, which had a shell 100 miles thick and consisted of seventeen layers. He reasoned that the atmosphere is very thick. Otherwise, a person could see the opposite side of the world. Also the atmosphere also prevents people from viewing the sun. Teed conducted experiments to prove the earth was hollow and published them in The Immortal Manhood (1902) and Cellular Cosmogony.

Teed revealed that the universe was composed of cells, of which the largest was the earth itself. The moon and planets are not material objects but focal points of life. From these conclusions, he formed his own religion, which he called Koreshanity. In 1894, it was estimated that there were 4,000 followers of Koreshanity. Teed published a magazine, The Flaming Sword And The Immortal Manhood, in which it was claimed that once he died, he would return to life and remain immortal. In 1894, he moved to Florida and established a new community, Estero, sixteen miles south of Fort Myers. Today Estero is a park.

Further Reading