White Water Shaker Village
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
One of the remaining buildings on the site
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The United States Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, more commonly known as the “Shakers”, began settling the White Water village in 1822. The first permanent structure, made of brick, was erected on the site in 1827. Building of the village happened quickly due to the Shakers’ enthusiasm to build and establish their community.
As mentioned above, White Water was a communal village, meaning that members of the community shared labor and the community was self-sufficient. The Shakers originated during the eighteenth century in England. Branching off from the Quakers, they were called “shaking Quakers” due to the fervor they expressed during worship. The Shaker religion, not just in Ohio, but also internationally, decreased in popularity due to the lack of appeal its strict religious practices held for many. Also, the practice of celibacy produced a problem as the religion relied entirely on converts. Although the sect is now very small, The Shakers are still in existence; however the community is extremely small. There are only three members and one novitiate of the only active US Shaker community, located in Maine.