This short (< 100 page), book really does a nice great job of presenting the history of the Shakers in Kentucky, and gives context of their missionaries into Kentucky after the Cane Ridge revival of 1801-18903.
When we tour the few buildings at Pleasant Hill (and even fewer at South Union), we forget that “the total number of buildings constructed at Pleasant Hull is listed as 266”. I think I also thought the Shakers shunned modern technology but “the Shaker trustees were interested in all mechanical devices that might help expedite the work and free some of the brothers and sisters for other tasks”. Work was an extension of their religious dedication and was successful at enterprises such as seeds and silk. They seemed to be very practical about making a living and for a few years, South Union even had a whiskey distillery.
The discussion of the Civil War and how the two Kentucky communities coped was well done, and surprised to learn that “the much-feared John Hunt Morgan respected them”. But this was a time of much diminished prosperity, and the Reconstruction period contributed to the decline. It may have been partly due to the grown of industry after the war, and decline of children wanting to stay in that community life.
This book does not attempt to present the theology of the Shakers in depth, not details of their crafts.
A dozen black and white photos are included
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