A Modern View

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Shaker Modern: a new interpretive platform that sheds light on the enduring appeal of Shaker lessons and their influences on today’s communities, lifestyles and design.

There’s a new phrase buzzing around Shaker Village. Shaker Modern is a term being used to describe our new exhibit, but also to describe what’s going on around this 3,000-acre property. The Shaker legacy is extremely relevant today, and we want to share that with our guests. So… we painted the walls white, rearranged some of our favorite Shaker artifacts and brought a new spin to this long told story.

Shaker craftsmanship has long influenced notable Modernist artists and designers. Beginning in the mid-20th century, Shaker furniture and textiles became a source of great inspiration to sculptors, poets, composers, dancers, architects and designers seeking balance through utility and simplicity.

The thoughtful, yet pragmatic principles of the Shakers have influenced not only a signature design ethos, but a remarkable cultural heritage that feels more relevant today than ever before. Shaker Modern celebrates Shaker lessons in community, sustainability and ingenuity—lessons that continue to impact this site and improve our lives every day.

Where can I see Shaker Modern?

Shaker Modern is everywhere! The concept is reflected in our new seasonal menus, daily programs, special events, retail merchandise, preservation plans and throughout the everyday tasks of this Village@Work. Here are a few examples:

Carpenters’ Shop Welcome Center
Opening Soon This one-stop sales and information hub will greet guests with a new Shaker Modern aesthetic, along with new interpretive and retail experiences.

Shaker Modern Exhibit
This new exhibit explores modern concepts of spirituality, community, ingenuity, diversity and sustainability through Pleasant Hill Shaker artifacts and stories. This exhibit will be on view through 2018 and is housed in three buildings: East Family Brethren’s Shop, East Family Wash House and East Family Sisters’ Shop. Check out the exhibit tour on the daily schedule!

Shaker Village Mobile App
Coming Soon This engaging mobile application will feature interactive wayfinding and geolocation-based interpretation, augmented reality, itinerary planning and much more.

The Shaker Modern Exhibit is on view now. Plan your visit!

It’s Moving Day!

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Most of us groan at the mention of the word “moving.” Imagine the thought of emptying a 21,500-square-foot building! Four floors filled with Shaker objects, reproductions and all sorts of treasures from the past 40 years of interpretation. And, we mean filled. That’s a half-acre of floor space. As you can see from the above photo, we like to utilize the wall space, too!

Why are we taking on such a task? In preparation for our biggest preservation project since the 1960s, we are emptying the largest and most iconic building onsite. This year, the 1820 Meeting House and 1824 Centre Family Dwelling will undergo a $5.1 million project to preserve, protect and interpret the Village’s spiritual center. This project is part of a multi-phase effort to revive the preservation of Shaker Village’s rich cultural landscape, while equipping historic spaces for new community-centered programs and activities.

Taken on the west side of Centre Family in 1973

The current Centre Family Dwelling once housed up to 100 members of the Centre “family” in 14 bedrooms and had kitchens, a dining room, a cellar with food storage rooms, an infirmary and a large meeting room. The current Meeting House held worship services for the entire community on the first floor and apartments for the Ministry on the second floor. Since the restoration of the 1960s, both spaces have been used for interpretation and programming, and until the mid-1990s, the Meeting House also housed administrative offices upstairs. Save the date for a visit in 2018-19 to see what they will house after the rehabilitation project!

So, what should you expect during your next visit to Shaker Village? Centre Family Dwelling will be closed June 26-30 for moving and preparation. We apologize for any inconvenience. It will reopen July 1 as an empty building. This structure hasn’t been completely empty since it was built in the early 19th century. Come experience it for yourself! Step inside and admire the architecture in the most simplistic way, just as the Shakers intended it to be.

Get the scoop on these historic buildings and become part of PRESERVATION@WORK during our daily programs and tours. While this project will be happening in the center of the Village, programs and daily adventures will continue around it. With 3,000 acres of Shaker Village, there’s still plenty to explore! Exhibit spaces and activities will be moved to the east end of the Village. While your experience may be slightly altered by the closing of these two buildings, we want to ensure that your time here is informative, inspirational and impactful.

Here’s an interesting item that was recently uncovered by collections staff while working in these storage spaces. It was found onsite in the 1960s and carries with it a mystery of its origin:

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This trunk covered in leather and decorated with brass studs. The studs create a decorative diamond motif, as well as form the initials “R.H.” Not only are we unsure how it arrived onsite or what it was used to store, but the identity of “R.H.” may never be known. If it was a Shaker, it could be a variety of people. Could it be Rachel Harris, one of the first Believers to join the Pleasant Hill community as a youth and “remained steadfast” until her death at 87? Or, could it be Robert Hawkins, who after absconding from the community causing one Shaker writer to exclaim, “What a puff of trash has blown away! Great releasement!”

Many items are mysterious. Each item is a little confusing and difficult. But, each item is exciting because it creates research opportunities for us as we try to understand the phenomenal, compelling and relevant story of Pleasant Hill. Who knows what else we will find along the way?

Plan a trip to see this once in a lifetime preservation project in action!

Aaron Genton is the collections manager. A love of history led him to study and work in the field….

Your Shaker Village Summer Bucket List

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In celebration of 225 years of statehood, Shaker Village and other destinations across the Commonwealth have been included on Kentucky Tourism’s Kentucky Bucket List. While the Shaker Village bucket list could indeed be endless, here a few things we don’t want you to miss this summer:

Join us for Well Crafted: Brews + Bands. Hurry, it’s this weekend! Sample more than 40 brews in the craft beer tent, while enjoying live music on two stages. Tickets are just $25.

Cruise under High Bridge aboard the Dixie Belle. Enjoy a relaxing ride aboard Shaker Village’s 115-passenger Dixie Belle Riverboat through high limestone cliffs and untouched natural beauty.

Check out Music on the Lawn! Every Friday and Saturday night through October, The Trustees’ Table Lawn features live music around the fire pits with specialty cocktails, drinks and yard games for the young at heart.

Bring the kids! There are farm animals to meet, creeks to play in and tons of places to explore around here. Kids Stay, Play + Eat Free during June and July, so plan your family getaway soon.

Try something new. Paddle + Yoga days are July 8 and 22. Join us for a special day of paddling and yoga activities, like Hike + Yoga, Candlelight Yoga, Glow Paddle Night Tours and more. Participate in one activity, or choose several for a full day of adventure—the choice is yours.

Spend the evening in search of your favorite brews at our Hike for Beer on July 8. Enjoy a short hike to a secret location for a summertime bash complete with good tunes and local brews.

Save the date for our annual Craft Fair on August 5 and 6.

Not featured on this list are weekend wagon rides, hiking, our garden volunteer program, new exhibits and daily adventures, Discovery Treks and SO MUCH MORE. Next time you’re at the Village, see what you can knock off of your bucket list. Share your Shaker Village adventures with us by using #shakervillageky!

Celebrating 225 Years of Kentucky

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On June 1, 1792, Kentucky entered the union as the nation’s 15th state. While Shaker missionaries wouldn’t grace the borders of the Commonwealth for another 13 years, by 1792, one of Kentucky’s future Shaker converts was already living on the tract of land which would eventually serve as the birthplace of the Pleasant Hill community. Elisha Thomas and his family owned “140 acres of land considerably improved on either side of Shawnee Run,” where, in 1806, the first members of what became the Society of Pleasant Hill initially gathered and “opened their minds” to the Shaker faith.[1]

Photo courtesy of Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division

Here, they built the community’s first meeting house, which, despite looking more like a stand than a proper assembly hall, served as the Shakers’ first place of worship. Soon the fledgling group of Shaker converts settled upon a more permanent place to accommodate the needs of their growing community. For more than a century, their new location—just 1.5 miles up the hill to where the Village now stands today—welcomed more than 2,400 Kentuckians, immigrants, wayfarers and settlers from no less than 50 Kentucky counties, 13 countries and 29 states. And today, with a little help from our Trail Map, modern-day guests can see where it all began.

While it’s only about a 1-mile hike from the Centre Trailhead to the geographical genesis of the Pleasant Hill Shakers, in total, the Pelly Trail—the only trail to provide access to the 500 acres of Village property south of US-68—is a 5-mile loop, best suited for hikers and horseback riders. Cyclists are welcome on this moderately difficult trail, but like the other 12 trails on the property, it’s not maintained for mountain biking. This portion of the Village’s 1,200 acres of native prairie can be reached exclusively by traveling through the culvert beneath the highway, so be prepared to get a little wet along the way. [2]

Two hundred twenty-five years after Kentucky forged its way to statehood, this property continues to serve as a gathering ground for families and individuals like Elisha Thomas and Pleasant Hill’s founding members. Here, we’re charged with the stewardship of this property’s natural and historical assets, which is why every day we’re working to conserve the land, preserve the buildings and provide families and individuals (like you!) access to the rich heritage left for us by the Pleasant Hill Shakers and their early-Kentucky predecessors. From maintaining 37 miles of trails throughout The Preserve to undertaking architectural rehabilitation projects in The Historic Centre, we’re on a mission to inspire generations of trailblazers and pioneering spirits, just like those who spearheaded Kentucky’s path to statehood 225 years ago.

Learn more about Kentucky’s path to statehood and other destinations throughout the Commonwealth at the KY 225 Commission’s website, where all Kentucky travelers are encouraged to share their Kentucky 225 anniversary adventures by using #ky225. 

Discover Shaker Village! Become an Annual Passholder and explore with us all year long.

1 Information obtained from The origins and progress of the Society of Pleasant Hill. Original manuscript held by Harrodsburg Historical Society, Harrodsburg, KY.

2 During times of high water, the culvert on the Pelly Trail may become impassible. All explorers who use The Trails at Shaker Village do so at their own risk and must sign in at the The Inn front desk to sign a property usage waiver before hitting the trails.

Plain, Simple and Painstaking: Preserving a Village, One Paperclip at a Time

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Preservation has been central to the mission of Shaker Village from the time of its incorporation in 1961 and has been an ongoing effort ever since. Because the Shakers were practitioners of preservation themselves, Shaker Village is fortunate to have surviving portions of the Shakers’ material culture. The documents, artifacts, fences, gravestones, buildings and barns, which are now under our stewardship, require attention, care and frequent preservation. From major rehabilitation projects like the upcoming work planned for the 1824 Centre Family Dwelling and 1820 Meeting House, replacing the roof and renovating the interior of the Carpenters’ Shop and restoring the exterior of West Family Wash House to housing sensitive items of the Collection in a climate-controlled storage facility, at Shaker Village, preservation is always present and always at work.

For loftier undertakings, we may bring in consultants to ensure preservation success; but the day-to-day preservation of the Village’s 3-dimensional and archival materials lies in the hands of our Collections staff. Things like sorting and rehousing piles of newspapers in acid-free boxes, using cloth tape to secure detached book covers to their bindings, removing sticky-notes from book pages, ensuring 3-dimensional objects are stored up off the ground on shelves and platforms, laying textiles flat in secure, tissue-lined cabinets and monitoring objects for pests and mold are all a part of preserving the history of the Shakers.

 

See an original copy of The Manifesto on display in the East Family Wash House as a part of our Shaker Modern exhibit.

But, the preservation of treasured materials isn’t reserved strictly to the professionals: it’s something many folks do every day without even realizing it!

You might not think about it at the time, but when you do something as simple as organize bills or receipts in a filing cabinet, you’re doing something to preserve them for when you may need them down the road. Believe it or not, that’s PRESERVATION@WORK!

Whether it be for the coming months, years or generations, we all have things we’d like to keep for the future. Here are some ways you can put preservation to work in your own life:

  • Keep documents and artifacts in a cool, dry area out of direct sunlight—not in the basement or attic where temperature and humidity can fluctuate with the seasons.
  • Avoid grouping or marking documents using metal paperclips, rubber bands, staples, tape, sticky-notes or dog-earring. While actions like this may seem harmless at the time, they can be damaging to the items you’re trying to preserve. Instead, if documents need to be grouped or marked, use plastic paper clips or acid-free paper and folders.
  • Something as simple as covering furniture with a sheet, quilt or moving blanket can help preserve 3-dimensional objects while in storage.
  • Refrain from sealing photographs, newspaper articles and other paper documents in lamination, non-archival page-protectors or photo sleeves. These types of plastics are more harmful than helpful and will actually result in a more rapid deterioration of what you’re trying to save.
  • Like living creatures, documents and objects need space and room to breathe. Never try to cram items into envelopes, folders, boxes, shelves or tight spaces. Give documents and objects ample space in their storage locations.
  • Less is more. The less you access, handle and use your prized books, documents, artifacts, textiles, furniture and memorabilia, the more time you and future generations of your family will have with them. While handling rare and special items for reference, research and display, it’s best to do so with care, caution and infrequency to ensure their longevity.

Do you have a favorite outfit you just can’t seem to part with? The Shakers did, too! Come see a dress that was rehabilitated over the years by the Shaker who wore it on display in the East Family Wash House as a part of our Shaker Modern exhibit.

Preservation can be painstaking—sometimes a matter of replacing one paperclip at a time. But whether you’re a preservation pupil or pro, it’s often the basics that end up making the greatest difference.

Take part in our history! Join us June 3 to celebrate, as we kick off our largest preservation project since the 1960s. Tour the buildings, speak with the project’s architects and learn about our grant-funded, multi-phase effort to preserve, protect and interpret the Village’s spiritual center.

Make a difference! No matter how big or small, your gift can make a difference. Help us preserve Shaker Village by giving today! 

Emálee Krulish, Archivist