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Struck by the beauty of every visible object in a Shaker kitchen they chanced to visit in 1923, young Edward Deming Andrews and his wife, Faith Young Andrews, embarked on a collection that became the passion of their lives. During the following decades, at a time when the art and artifacts of the Shakers were considered "low" art and unworthy of collecting or exhibiting, the Andrewses energetically collected objects, studied sources, and eventually mounted exhibits and published books on Shaker...

In 1805, at the height of the period of early religious excitement in Kentucky, three members of the Shaker community in New Lebanon, New York, came to the Commonwealth of Kentucky to recruit converts. Soon there were little communities of Believers at Pleasant Hill in Mercer County and at South Union in Logan County. These settlements survived into the twentieth century as centers of worship and communal life; the buildings the Shakers erected here and many of their tools and artifacts remain t...

" . . . an excellent collection of writings covering the period 1774-1854 . . . mostly in print for the first time. . . . Humez provides excellent and clear introductions, emphasizing the ambiguous role of women." —Library Journal "This very fine book is a valuable contribution to Shaker studies, religious studies, and women's studies." —Journal of American History "The editor provides insightful commentary, but the power is in the straightforward and powerful words of the women who founded an...

The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, commonly known as the Shakers, followed Mother Ann Lee to the United States in 1774 when life in England became difficult. In the United States, they established several colonies whose governing principals included celibacy and agrarian communal living. Even at its peak, however, Shakerism claimed only about 4,500 members. Today, except for one active community in Sabbathday, Maine, the great Shaker villages are diminished, but the Sh...

In Simple Gifts, June Sprigg tells the story of one of America's last Shaker communities--Canterbury Shaker Village, in Canterbury, New Hampshire--during its twilight years, and of its seven remarkable "survivor" women, who were among the last representatives of our longest-lived and best-known communal utopian society. As a college student Sprigg spent a summer among them, and here she gracefully interweaves the narrative of their lives with the broader history of Shakers in America as she show...

This is the story of the successful communal living in South Union, Kentucky, by the Shakers. Although quiet and conservative in matters of dress and living quarters, these people believed in the usefulness of modern invention that would make God's work"" easier and better. This book about their beliefs and way of life contributes to a better understanding of this socioreligious group.""A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make avail...

Describes the culture and daily way of life of the Shakers and the religious motives inspiring them.

This book takes a look at the faith, philosophy, and way of life of the country's one remaining Shaker community. Lauber explores their spiritual and daily lives by weaving together proprietary Shaker quotations, interviews, and photographs. The result is a book that pierces many misconceptions, most notably that the Shakers and their faith are dead. Lauber places the topics of faith, community, work, and worship in the context of Shaker history and contemporary developments on the American land...