75-529: Other members Hancock Shaker Village is a former Shaker commune in Hancock and Pittsfield , Massachusetts . It emerged in the towns of Hancock, Pittsfield, and Richmond in the 1780s, organized in 1790, and was active until 1960. It was the third of nineteen major Shaker villages established between 1774 and 1836 in New York , New England , Kentucky , Ohio and Indiana . From 1790 until 1893, Hancock
150-459: A Believer – and separation from the world. Ann Lee's doctrine was simple: confession of sins was the door to the spiritual regeneration, and absolute celibacy was the rule of life. Shakers were so chaste that men and women could not shake hands or pass one another on the stairs. Enshrined in Shaker doctrine is a belief in racial equality and gender equality. Shakers were celibate; procreation
225-836: A library four days a week, which is connected to the regional library systems. On the state level, West Stockbridge is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives by the Fourth Berkshire district, which covers southern Berkshire County, as well as the westernmost towns in Hampden County. In the Massachusetts Senate , the town is represented by the Berkshire, Hampshire and Franklin district, which includes all of Berkshire County and western Hampshire and Franklin counties. The town
300-644: A message for this present age–a message as valid today as when it was first expressed. It teaches above all else that God is Love and that our most solemn duty is to show forth that God who is love in the World. In 1992, Canterbury Shaker Village closed, leaving only Sabbathday Lake open. Eldress Bertha of the Canterbury Village closed their official membership book in 1957, not recognizing the younger people living in other Shaker Communities as members. On January 2, 2017, Sister Frances Carr died aged 89 at
375-606: A small nucleus of Ministry elders and eldresses with authority over all the Shaker villages, each with their own teams of elders and eldresses who were subordinate to the Ministry. The Shaker Ministry continued to build the society after Lucy Wright died in 1821: Subsequent members of the Shaker Ministry included: Shaker theology is based on the idea of the dualism of God as male and female: "So God created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27). This passage
450-654: A year visit the museum between April and October. It has 20 historic buildings with over 22,000 artifacts, extensive gardens, a working farm, and hiking trails, and runs craft demonstrations. Several special celebrations take place throughout the season, including Baby Animals on the Shaker Farm in the spring and Country Fair in the fall. Hancock Shaker Village was included in Bob Vila 's A&E Network production Guide to Historic Homes of America. On May 4, 2012, The Berkshire Eagle reported that Hancock Shaker Village
525-673: Is a member of the Berkshire Hills Regional School District, along with Stockbridge and Great Barrington, which hosts all the district's schools. All students in the district attend the Muddy Brook Regional School from pre-kindergarten through fourth grades. Middle school students attend Monument Valley Regional Middle School, and high school students attend Monument Mountain Regional High School. Prior to creation of
600-590: Is at Albany International Airport in New York. As of the census of 2000, there were 1,416 people, 601 households, and 406 families residing in the town. By population, West Stockbridge ranks 18th out of the 32 cities and towns in Berkshire County, and 310th out of 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The population density was 76.6 inhabitants per square mile (29.6/km ), which rank 15th in
675-460: Is because "God has no sex in our human understanding of the term; yet being pure spirit He may best be thought of by man with his limited power of comprehension as having the attributes of both maleness and femaleness". The Trinity is not viewed as being false. Instead, Shakers argue that the Trinity has been misinterpreted for being completely masculine. Ann Lee's embodiment of Christ thus completed
750-722: Is patrolled by the First (Lee) Station of Barracks "B" of the Massachusetts State Police . On the national level, West Stockbridge is represented in the United States House of Representatives as part of Massachusetts's 1st congressional district , and is represented by Richard Neal . Massachusetts is currently represented in the United States Senate by senior Senator Elizabeth Warren and junior Senator Ed Markey . West Stockbridge
825-747: Is situated along the Williams River, a marshy tributary of the Housatonic River . To the northeast, West Stockbridge Mountain lies along the Stockbridge town line. To the southwest, Tom Ball Mountain rises above the Alford town line, and Harvey Mountain rises on the state border. Maple Hill rises in the center of town, and is covered by a wildlife management area. Interstate 90 , the Massachusetts Turnpike , crosses into
SECTION 10
#1732782498157900-490: Is water. West Stockbridge is bordered on the north by Richmond , on the east by Stockbridge , on the south by Great Barrington , on the southwest by Alford , and on the west by Austerlitz and Canaan , New York . West Stockbridge is 11 miles (18 km) south-southwest of Pittsfield , Massachusetts , 50 miles (80 km) west-northwest of Springfield , 132 miles (212 km) west of Boston , and 36 miles (58 km) southeast of Albany, New York . West Stockbridge
975-550: The Berkshire Athenaeum , Fruitlands Museums Library, Hamilton College Library, Hancock Shaker Village , Library of Congress , New York Public Library , New York State Library , the Shaker Library at Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village , Shaker Museum | Mount Lebanon , Western Reserve Historical Society , Williams College Archives, Winterthur Museum Library, and other repositories. As pacifists,
1050-601: The Cane Ridge, Kentucky revival of 1801–1803, which was an outgrowth of the Logan County, Kentucky, Revival of 1800 . From 1805 to 1807, they founded Shaker societies at Union Village, Ohio ; South Union, Logan County, Kentucky ; and Pleasant Hill, Kentucky (in Mercer County, Kentucky ). In 1806, a Shaker village, named Watervliet , after the New York town that was the site of the first Shaker settlement,
1125-861: The Northeast . Ann and William Lee died in 1784, and their friend and co-minister James Whittaker died in 1787. The movement was then re-organized and institutionalized by the American converts Joseph Meacham and Lucy Wright . Shaker converts were gathered into communal villages, where all property was jointly owned. After the conversion of the prominent local ministers Joseph Meacham and Calvin Harlow from Canaan and New Lebanon, New York, and then subsequently Valentine Rathbun and much of his family from West Pittsfield, Massachusetts, many farmers in New Lebanon, Hancock, West Pittsfield, and Richmond, began joining
1200-530: The Tyringham, Massachusetts and Enfield, Connecticut Shaker communities. The Hancock Bishopric in turn was overseen by the Ministry in the New Lebanon commune one town over, on the New York side of the state border. The various industries and tasks within each family at Hancock were managed by deacons and deaconesses, with the deacons of finance and legal affairs later becoming known as Trustees. In 1893,
1275-573: The new Jerusalem descended from above, these are even now at the door. And when Christ appears again, and the true church rises in full and transcendent glory, then all anti-Christian denominations—the priests, the Church, the pope—will be swept away. Other meetings were then held in Manchester , Meretown (also spelled Mayortown), Chester and other places near Manchester. As their numbers grew, members began to be persecuted, mobbed, and stoned; Lee
1350-526: The urban migration that accompanied the Industrial Revolution , and by the westward migration of New England's youth. By the early twentieth century, the population of the village had fallen to around 50, most of whom were children. The remaining Shakers sold off their excess land, and many buildings were destroyed. The decision was eventually made in 1960 to close the village and sell the property and buildings. Non-Shakers were impressed by
1425-584: The "second coming" of Christ, traveled throughout the eastern states, preaching her gospel views. After Ann Lee and James Whittaker died, Joseph Meacham (1742–1796) became the leader of the Shakers in 1787, establishing its New Lebanon headquarters . He had been a New Light Baptist minister in Enfield, Connecticut , and was reputed to have, second only to Mother Ann, the spiritual gift of revelation. Joseph Meacham brought Lucy Wright (1760–1821) into
1500-491: The 1830s and 1840s, Hancock consisted of six communal orders, known as "families": The Church Family, Second Family, East Family, West Family, South Family, and North Family. Overseeing each family was two men and two women, known as elders and eldresses. Overseeing the entire collective of Hancock families were two elders and two eldresses who served as the Ministry of the Hancock Bishopric. This ministry also oversaw
1575-652: The 18th century in the northwest of England ; originating out of the Wardley Society . James and Jane Wardley and others broke off from the Quakers in 1747 at a time when the Quakers were weaning themselves away from frenetic spiritual expression. The Wardleys formed the Wardley Society, which was also known as the "Shaking Quakers". Future leader Ann Lee and her parents were early members of
SECTION 20
#17327824981571650-468: The 21st century, the Shaker community that still exists—The Sabbathday Lake Shaker Community—denies that Shakerism was a failed utopian experiment. Their message, surviving over two centuries in the United States, reads in part as follows: Shakerism is not, as many would claim, an anachronism; nor can it be dismissed as the final sad flowering of 19th century liberal utopian fervor. Shakerism has
1725-586: The Bride made ready for the Bridegroom, and in her, the promises of the Second Coming were fulfilled. Because of the adoptionist view of Christ only becoming divine during his baptism and the dualist idea that God was to be expressed in male and female genders, Shakers are sometimes viewed as being nontrinitarian . However, modern-day Shakers profess the divinity of Christ and claim that Shaker dualism
1800-595: The Hancock Ministry was dissolved and the remaining members of the Hancock and Enfield villages overseen directly by the Ministry of Mount Lebanon, which was now called the Central Ministry. The Shaker religion began in Manchester , England around the year 1747. A group of dissident Christians, they practiced ecstatic worship and egalitarianism . A young woman named Ann Lee gradually emerged as
1875-484: The Hancock Shaker property—scrupulously clean, neat, and well-tended—and their innovations in farming, such as the round barn that attracted much attention (see description below). Visitors also praised Hancock Shakers' products, including boxes "of beautiful workmanship" and garden seeds. Before 1820, the village was prosperous and the Shakers were respected as good neighbors. One of the most notable buildings in
1950-428: The Ministry to serve with him and together they developed the Shaker form of communal living ( religious communism ). By 1793 property had been made a "consecrated whole" in each Shaker community. Shakers developed written covenants in the 1790s. Those who signed the covenant had to confess their sins, consecrate their property and their labor to the society, and live as celibates. If they were married before joining
2025-655: The Sabbathday community, leaving only two remaining Shakers: Brother Arnold Hadd, age 58, and Sister June Carpenter, 77. A profile of the Shaker community at Sabbathday Lake, published in The New York Times in September 2024, described Brother Arnold, aged 67 and Sister June, aged 86, preparing to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Ann Lee's arrival in New York. Brother Arnold said: “We’ve survived 250 years. We are looking forward as much as our ancestors did to
2100-567: The Shaker Central Ministry closed the Hancock community, and sold its buildings and land. Purchasers formed the not-for-profit Hancock Shaker Village, Inc. to preserve the historic site. The museum opened on July 1, 1961, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1968. The museum's mission statement is "to bring the Shaker story to life and preserve it for future generations." Over 60,000 people
2175-471: The Shaker community as members left or died with few converts to the faith to replace them. By 1920, there were only 12 Shaker communities remaining in the United States. As of 2019 , there is only one active Shaker village: Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village , in Maine . Consequently, many of the other Shaker settlements are now museums . The Shakers were one of a few religious groups which were formed during
2250-794: The Shaker faith starting in the 1780s. This included numerous members of the Goodrich family, Lucy Wright (the wife of Elizur Goodrich), John and Sarah Deming, Hezekiah Osborne, members of the Hammond family, Samuel Fitch, numerous members of the Talcott family, Luther and Joshua Cogswell, John Wright, Johsua Boyington, and Sarah Harrison. Others further afield, such as Samuel Johnson in West Stockbridge , Zipporah Carey and her mother in Cheshire , and Olive Miller of Hinsdale , also were drawn to
2325-528: The Shakers did not believe that it was acceptable to kill or harm others, even in time of war. During the American Civil War , both Union and Confederate soldiers found their way to the Shaker communities. Shakers tended to sympathize with the Union but they did feed and care for both Union and Confederate soldiers. President Lincoln exempted Shaker males from military service, and they became some of
Hancock Shaker Village - Misplaced Pages Continue
2400-578: The Shakers in America was represented in a vision: "I saw a large tree, every leaf of which shone with such brightness as made it appear like a burning torch, representing the Church of Christ, which will yet be established in this land." Unable to swear an Oath of Allegiance, as it was against their faith, the members were imprisoned for about six months. Since they were only imprisoned because of their faith, this raised sympathy of citizens and thus helped to spread their religious beliefs. Mother Ann, revealed as
2475-406: The Shakers. The Hancock Shakers supported themselves primarily through farming. The raising and sale of garden seeds was the most lucrative of their early businesses. Land acquisition and conversion continued for decades, and by the 1830s some 300 Hancock Shakers owned about 3,000 acres (12 km). After reaching peak membership in the 1840s, the Shaker movement gradually dwindled, partially due to
2550-642: The Trinity by fulfilling the female aspect of God. Adam's sin was understood to be sex, which was considered to be an act of impurity. Therefore, marriage was abolished within the body of the Believers in the Second Appearance, which was patterned after the Kingdom of God, in which there would be no marriage or giving in marriage. The four highest Shaker virtues were virgin purity, communalism , confession of sin – without which one could not become
2625-882: The United States in the 1780s. They were initially known as "Shaking Quakers " because of their ecstatic behavior during worship services. Espousing egalitarian ideals, the Shakers practice a celibate and communal utopian lifestyle, pacifism , uniform charismatic worship , and their model of equality of the sexes , which they institutionalized in their society in the 1780s. They are also known for their simple living , architecture , technological innovation, music, and furniture . Women took on spiritual leadership roles alongside men, including founding leaders such as Jane Wardley , Ann Lee , and Lucy Wright . The Shakers emigrated from England and settled in Revolutionary colonial America , with an initial settlement at Watervliet, New York (present-day Colonie ), in 1774. During
2700-421: The age of 18 living with them, 56.9% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.86. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.8% under
2775-464: The age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 31.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $ 120,000, and the median income for a family was $ 100,000. Males had a median income of $ 95,000 versus $ 79,000 for females. The per capita income for
2850-458: The age of 21, they were free to leave or to remain with the Shakers. Unwilling to remain celibate, many chose to leave; today there are thousands of descendants of Shaker-raised seceders. Shaker religion valued women and men equally in religious leadership. The church was hierarchical, and at each level women and men shared authority. This was reflective of the Shaker belief that God was both female and male. They believed men and women were equal in
2925-499: The county and 299th in the Commonwealth. There were 769 housing units at an average density of 41.6 per square mile (16.1/km ). The racial makeup of the town was 98.09% White , 0.28% African American , 0.07% Native American , 0.92% Asian , 0.07% from other races , and 0.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.85% of the population. There were 601 households, out of which 28.1% had children under
3000-445: The downstairs kitchen and the dining room on the floor above, an abundance of windows for light and ventilation. All of the windows in the building, rather than having a 90-degree angle with the wall, form a 45-degree (approx.) angle in the wall, which allows approximately 30 percent more light into the building—something that significantly keeps the electrical bills low while allowing the people to experience more natural light. In 1960,
3075-521: The ecstatic nature of their worship services. They believed in the renunciation of sinful acts and that the end of the world was near. Meetings were first held in Bolton, England , where the articulate preacher, Jane Wardley, urged her followers to: Repent. For the kingdom of God is at hand. The new heaven and new earth prophesied of old is about to come. The marriage of the Lamb, the first resurrection,
Hancock Shaker Village - Misplaced Pages Continue
3150-834: The faith. On April 12, of 1805 Benjamin Youngs, and two companions, held the first ceremony west of the Allegheny Mountains. It was held at the cabin of James Beedle , East of Lebanon, Ohio. In 2019, the cabin was relocated, by the Warren County Historical Society, to its current site next to Harmon Museum in Lebanon, Ohio. Mother Lucy Wright introduced new hymns and dances to make sermons more lively. She also helped write Benjamin S. Youngs' book The Testimony of Christ's Second Appearing (1808). Shaker missionaries entered Kentucky and Ohio after
3225-485: The fall of Adam and Eve and its relationship to sexual intercourse . A powerful preacher, she called her followers to confess their sins, give up all their worldly goods, and take up the cross of celibacy and forsake marriage, as part of the renunciation of all "lustful gratifications". She said: I saw in vision the Lord Jesus in his kingdom and glory. He revealed to me the depth of man's loss, what it was, and
3300-573: The fields doing farm work and in their shops at crafts and trades. Shakers worshipped in meetinghouses painted white and unadorned; pulpits and decorations were eschewed as worldly things. In meeting, they marched, sang, danced, and sometimes turned, twitched, jerked, or shouted. The earliest Shaker worship services were unstructured, loud, chaotic and emotional. However, Shakers later developed precisely choreographed dances and orderly marches accompanied by symbolic gestures. Many outsiders disapproved of or mocked Shakers' mode of worship without understanding
3375-596: The first conscientious objectors in American history. The end of the Civil War brought large changes to the Shaker communities. One of the most important changes was the postwar economy. The Shakers had a hard time competing in the industrialized economy that followed the Civil War. With prosperity falling, converts were hard to find. By the early 20th century, the once numerous Shaker communities were failing and closing. By mid-century, new federal laws were passed denying control of adoption to religious groups. Today, in
3450-409: The hay from eventually spontaneously combusting. The next ring out is where the hay was stored. It was tossed in from an upper level balcony that was accessible by ox-drawn wagon via a ramp outdoors. Because the barn was round, the wagons could enter, unload the hay and then exit the barn without ever having to back up. The third ring out was where the Shaker brothers would walk to distribute the hay from
3525-583: The largest because of the railroad, which hauled iron ore and marble . The town had an ironworks in Williamsville, founded by Colonel Elijah Williams, and the furnace smokestack is the only part which remains of the works. According to the United States Census Bureau , the town has a total area of 18.7 square miles (48.4 km ), of which 18.5 square miles (47.8 km ) is land and 0.15 square miles (0.4 km ), or 1.23%,
3600-495: The manure to their gardens to be used as fertilizer. The other iconic building is the large red-brick dwelling the Hancock Shakers built in 1830 served as dormitory housing to more than one hundred brothers and sisters. The dwelling, like the barn, shows the Shakers' prosperity, as well as their appreciation of the benefits of space, ventilation, and labor-saving modern conveniences such as water piped indoors. The dwelling
3675-407: The mid-19th century, an Era of Manifestations resulted in a period of dances, gift drawings, and gift songs inspired by spiritual revelations. At its peak in the mid-19th century, there were 2,000–4,000 Shaker believers living in 18 major communities and numerous smaller, often short-lived communities. External and internal societal changes in the mid- and late-19th century resulted in the thinning of
3750-412: The next — whatever that involves. All we have to do is be ready.” The Shakers at Sabbathday Lake "stressed the autonomy of each local community" and therefore do accept new converts to Shakerism into their community. This Sabbathday Lake Shaker Community receives around two enquiries every week. Four Shakers led the society from 1772 until 1821. After 1821, there was no one single leader, but rather
3825-529: The primary leader of the group. In 1770, she experience visions and revelations taught her that only by renouncing sexual relations could humankind ever achieve entrance into heaven. After enduring persecution in England, the small group of Shakers, led by Lee, set sail for the New York colony in 1774. By 1776, they settled within Watervliet, New York , establishing what became Watervliet Shaker Village . In
SECTION 50
#17327824981573900-713: The regional district, high school students in West Stockbridge attended the former Williams High School in Stockbridge. There are private schools located in the nearby towns of Great Barrington and Lenox which are also open to students from the town. The nearest community college is the South County branch of Berkshire Community College in Great Barrington. The nearest state college is Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, and
3975-417: The scribe and historian for the New Lebanon, New York, Church Family of Shakers, preserved a great deal of information on the era of manifestations, which Shakers referred to as Mother Ann's Work, in his Domestic Journal, his diary, Sketches of Visions, and his history, A Concise View of the Church of God. In addition, Shakers preserved thousands of spirit communications still extant in collections now held by
4050-437: The second ring to the cows standing in the fourth (outermost) ring. The barn could hold up to 70 cows at a time. They would go to the barn twice a day: once in the morning and once in the evening to be milked. Inside the barn they were put into wooden stanchions. Standing there, the cows could eat while the brothers milked them. The floor of the outermost ring is split level, with the inner part raised up 3 inches (76 mm). This
4125-612: The sect. This group of "charismatic" Christians became the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing (USBCSA). Their beliefs were based upon spiritualism and included the notion that they received messages from the Holy Spirit which were expressed during religious revivals. They also experienced what they interpreted as messages from God during silent meditations and became known as "Shaking Quakers" because of
4200-521: The sexes lived apart under one roof. Wide hallways separate the brethren's rooms from the sisters' rooms; separate doors and stairways for men and women meant that a sister never had to pass a brother going through those openings. Men and women ate at opposite ends of the dining room. The dwelling also has features unusual in habitations of their era; interior windows for borrowed light to illuminate an otherwise-dark stairwell, built-in cabinets and cases of drawers, dumb-waiters for moving food and dishes between
4275-751: The sight of God, and should be treated equally on earth, too. Thus two Elders and two Eldresses formed the Ministry at the top of the administrative structure. Two lower-ranking Elders and two Eldresses led each family, women overseeing women and men overseeing men. This allowed the continuation of church leadership when there was a shortage of men. In their labor, Shakers followed traditional gender work-related roles. Their homes were segregated by sex, as were women and men's work areas. Women worked indoors spinning, weaving, cooking, sewing, cleaning, washing, and making or packaging goods for sale. In good weather, groups of Shaker women were outdoors, gardening and gathering wild herbs for sale or home consumption. Men worked in
4350-1356: The society, their marriages ended when they joined. A few less-committed Believers lived in "noncommunal orders" as Shaker sympathizers who preferred to remain with their families. The Shakers never forbade marriage for such individuals, but considered it less perfect than the celibate state. In the 5 years between 1787 and 1792, the Shakers gathered into eight more communities in addition to the Watervliet and New Lebanon villages: Hancock , Harvard , Shirley , and Tyringham Shaker Villages in Massachusetts; Enfield Shaker Village in Connecticut; Canterbury and Enfield in New Hampshire; and Sabbathday Lake and Alfred Shaker Village in Maine. After Joseph Meacham died, Lucy Wright continued Ann Lee's missionary tradition. Shaker missionaries proselytized at revivals , not only in New England and New York but also farther west. Missionaries such as Issachar Bates and Benjamin Seth Youngs (older brother of Isaac Newton Youngs ) gathered hundreds of proselytes into
4425-559: The state in West Stockbridge. Exit 1 , which solely consists of a western exit and eastern entrance, is located near the center of town, near the southern junction of Route 41 and Route 102 , which begins on the state border in the village of State Line. An abandoned rail line crosses through town, adjoining the active line in State Line and heading southward through town towards Great Barrington. The nearest regional transportation services can all be reached in Pittsfield, including bus, Amtrak and air service. The nearest national air service
4500-407: The symbolism of their movements or the content of their songs. West Stockbridge, Massachusetts West Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County , Massachusetts , United States. The town had a population of 1,343 at the time of the 2020 United States Census . It is part of the Pittsfield , Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area . West Stockbridge was first settled in 1766 and
4575-418: The town was $ 90,000. About 1.8% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line , including 1.3% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over. West Stockbridge employs the open town meeting form of government, and is led by a Select Board and a Town Administrator. The town has its own services, including police, fire and public works, as well as a post office. The town operates
SECTION 60
#17327824981574650-420: The village is the "Round Stone Barn" built in 1826. That barn was built in a circular shape for several reasons, the primary one being that it was the most functional. It is one of few surviving round barns in the state. Inside the barn there are four rings. The innermost ring provides ventilation. This ventilation is necessary to help draw the moisture up and out of the hay which prevents mold from growing and
4725-837: The way of redemption therefrom. Then I was able to bear an open testimony against the sin that is the root of all evil; and I felt the power of God flow into my soul like a fountain of living water. From that day I have been able to take up a full cross against all the doleful works of the flesh. Having supposedly received a revelation, on May 19, 1774, Ann Lee and eight of her followers sailed from Liverpool for colonial America. Ann and her husband Abraham Stanley, brother William Lee, niece Nancy Lee, James Whittaker , father and son John Hocknell and Richard Hocknell, James Shephard, and Mary Partington traveled to colonial America and landed in New York City . Abraham Stanley abandoned Ann Lee shortly thereafter and remarried. The remaining Shakers settled in Watervliet, New York , in 1776. Mother Ann's hope for
4800-451: The winter of 1779–1780, a brief religious revival swept through Baptist and Presbyterian congregations in Columbia County, New York and Berkshire County, Massachusetts . After the revival dissipated in the summer of 1780, many ministers and congregants from these churches investigated the Shakers and began converting. Invigorated by this influx of new converts, the Shakers expanded through missionary trips from 1780 through 1784 throughout
4875-450: Was a good advertisement for the creature comforts the society provided to its members. In modern times, the visitors to the Hancock Shaker Village can experience authentic Shaker meals in the dining room in the Brick Dwelling. Though the guests are no longer required to separate by sex while they eat, the event maintains its authenticity with its use of sermons, songs, hymns and reliance on natural and candle light. The dwelling also shows how
4950-421: Was at its height between 1820 and 1860. It was at this time that the sect had the most members, and the period was considered its "golden age". It had expanded from New England to the Midwestern states of Indiana and Ohio and Southern state of Kentucky . It was during this period that it became known for its furniture design and craftsmanship. In the late 1830s a spiritual revivalism, the Era of Manifestations
5025-401: Was born. It was also known as the "period of Mother's work", for the spiritual revelations that were passed from the late Mother Ann Lee . The expression of "spirit gifts" or messages were realized in "gift drawings" made by Hannah Cohoon , Polly Reed, Polly Collins , and other Shaker sisters. A number of those drawings remain as important artifacts of Shaker folk art. Isaac N. Youngs ,
5100-443: Was established in what is today Kettering, Ohio , surviving until 1900 when its remaining adherents joined the Union Village Shaker settlement . In 1824, the Whitewater Shaker Settlement was established in southwestern Ohio . The westernmost Shaker community was located at West Union (called Busro because it was on Busseron Creek) on the Wabash River a few miles north of Vincennes in Knox County, Indiana . The Shaker movement
5175-492: Was forbidden after they joined the society (except for women who were already pregnant at admission). Children were added to their communities through indenture, adoption, or conversion. Occasionally a foundling was anonymously left on a Shaker doorstep. They welcomed all, often taking in orphans and the homeless. For children, Shaker life was structured, safe and predictable, with no shortage of adults who cared about their young charges. When Shaker youths, girls and boys, reached
5250-447: Was imprisoned in Manchester. The members looked to women for leadership, believing that the second coming of Christ would be through a woman. In 1770, Ann Lee was revealed in "manifestation of Divine light" to be the second coming of Christ and was called Mother Ann. Ann Lee joined the Shakers by 1758, then became the leader of the small community. "Mother Ann", as her followers later called her, claimed numerous revelations regarding
5325-399: Was interpreted as showing the dual nature of the Creator. Shakers believed that Jesus, born of a woman, the son of a Jewish carpenter, was the male manifestation of Christ and the first Christian Church ; and that Mother Ann, daughter of an English blacksmith, was the female manifestation of Christ and the second Christian Church (which the Shakers believed themselves to be). She was seen as
5400-419: Was officially incorporated in 1774. The town grew out of Stockbridge , formerly known as Indiantown, and was originally called Queensborough. The area was part of the disputed border between Massachusetts and New York, which eventually left the town in its current state. The town grew as five separate villages (West Center, West Stockbridge, Freedleyville, Rockdale and Williamsville), with West Stockbridge growing
5475-504: Was one of several local sites chosen for shooting in a low-budget thriller film, The Secret Village , with a climax at Hancock Village. The film crew shot scenes on-site on May 3, 2012. Shakers Other members The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing , more commonly known as the Shakers , are a millenarian restorationist Christian sect founded c. 1747 in England and then organized in
5550-477: Was the seat of the Hancock Bishopric, which oversaw two additional Shaker communes in Tyringham , Massachusetts, and Enfield, Connecticut . The village was closed by the Shakers in 1960, and sold to a local group who formed an independent non-profit. This organization now operates the property as an open-air museum . It was added to the National Register of Historic Places and declared a National Historic Landmark District in 1968. At its peak in population in
5625-427: Was to prevent the unsanitary situation of having the milk buckets on the same level as the manure. In addition, the Shakers developed a way of efficiently removing the manure from the complex to use it for compost. Approximately every four feet around the outermost ring was a trapdoor which was used to quickly scoop the manure from the floor into a pit beneath the barn. Other workers would then access this pit to transport
#156843