James Bernard Schafer (1896 – April 26, 1955) was a man primarily known as the founder of a cult known as the Royal Fraternity of Master Metaphysicians and by an attempt to raise an "immortal baby".
[2] Press coverage of Schafer in connection with the Royal Fraternity of Master Metaphysicians mentions that he was born in Fargo, North Dakota, had a medical degree [3] and that he had been a member of the Ku Klux Klan.
Schafer renamed it "Peace Haven",[6][7] and opened it as a retreat for those who purchased a "fellowship", the price of which was initially $100 (equivalent to $2,190 in 2023 dollars) but ballooned to $500 by the end of 1940.
[11] A building at 217 W. 57th Street, built by Jay Gould as a stable, was purchased by the group in February 1940 as the location for an auditorium.
[13] In November 1939, Schafer announced his intention to bring Baby Jean, whose mother, a waitress named Catherine Gauntt,[14] was too poor to raise her, into the mansion and prepare her for everlasting life through metaphysics and a special vegetable diet.