Enfield Shaker Museum
Encyclopedia
The Enfield Shaker Museum is a museum and historic site in Enfield
, New Hampshire
, USA. It is dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the Shakers
, a Protestant religious denomination, who lived on the site from 1793 to 1923. The museum features exhibitions, artifacts, eight Shaker buildings and restored Shaker gardens. It is located in a valley between Mount Assurance
and Mascoma Lake
in Enfield.
Like other Shaker communities, the Enfield Shaker village declined throughout the second half of the 19th century. By 1920, there were fewer than a dozen Shakers remaining. In 1923, they closed the Enfield Shaker village and moved to the Canterbury community
in central New Hampshire.
In 1927, the site was sold to the Missionaries of La Salette
, who converted the site into a seminary, school and conference site. The La Salettes built a neo-classical revival chapel for worship services, which is now part of the museum and open to visitors.
The Missionaries of La Salette sold the site in 1985, at which time a large number of private homes were built on the site. Since 1986, the Enfield Shaker Museum has worked to preserve the Shaker heritage of the site without neglecting the 20th century history of the village. The museum is open 7 days a week, offering tours of the site, and invites visitors to stay overnight in the original Shaker bedrooms.
The site is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
as the Enfield Shaker Historic District.
in Vermont
and later the first supervising architect for the United States Treasury. The granite
stonework on the exterior and the slate
roof were constructed by stonemasons from Boston
. The Shaker brothers constructed the rest of the building themselves.
Enfield, New Hampshire
Enfield is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,582 at the 2010 census. The town includes the villages of Enfield, Enfield Center, Upper Shaker Village, Lower Shaker Village, Lockehaven, and Montcalm....
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, USA. It is dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...
, a Protestant religious denomination, who lived on the site from 1793 to 1923. The museum features exhibitions, artifacts, eight Shaker buildings and restored Shaker gardens. It is located in a valley between Mount Assurance
Mount Assurance
Mount Assurance is a mountain in New Hampshire, USA. It is close to Enfield and Mascoma Lake. It is possible to hike up the mountain.The Shaker community in Enfield treated the peak as being sacred.- External links :*...
and Mascoma Lake
Mascoma Lake
Mascoma Lake is a lake in western New Hampshire, United States. Most of the lake is located within the town of Enfield, while a small portion is within the city of Lebanon, where it drains into the Mascoma River, a tributary of the Connecticut River....
in Enfield.
History of the site
The Shakers, or United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, settled on the site in 1793. The site was divided into three smaller organizations, or families: the Church Family, the North Family and the Second (or South) Family. At its peak, there were approximately 300 Shakers living on the site. The site covered over 3000 acres (1,214.1 ha).Like other Shaker communities, the Enfield Shaker village declined throughout the second half of the 19th century. By 1920, there were fewer than a dozen Shakers remaining. In 1923, they closed the Enfield Shaker village and moved to the Canterbury community
Canterbury shaker village
Canterbury Shaker Village, is a historic site and museum in Canterbury, New Hampshire. It was one of a number of Shaker communities founded in the 19th century....
in central New Hampshire.
In 1927, the site was sold to the Missionaries of La Salette
Missionaries of La Salette
The Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette are a religious congregation of priests and brothers in the Latin Church one of the 23 sui iuris churches which make up the Catholic Church which is led by the Bishop of Rome. They are named after the apparition of Our Lady of La Salette in France La...
, who converted the site into a seminary, school and conference site. The La Salettes built a neo-classical revival chapel for worship services, which is now part of the museum and open to visitors.
The Missionaries of La Salette sold the site in 1985, at which time a large number of private homes were built on the site. Since 1986, the Enfield Shaker Museum has worked to preserve the Shaker heritage of the site without neglecting the 20th century history of the village. The museum is open 7 days a week, offering tours of the site, and invites visitors to stay overnight in the original Shaker bedrooms.
The site is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as the Enfield Shaker Historic District.
Great Stone Dwelling House
The Great Stone Dwelling houses the gift shop and the primary exhibition space. The dwelling was the largest Shaker dwelling house ever built, and was constructed 1837-1841. The building was designed to house over 150 Shakers. The building was designed by Ammi Burnham Young, designer of the second state capitolVermont State House
The Vermont State House, located in Montpelier, is the state capitol of Vermont and the seat of the Vermont General Assembly. The current Greek Revival structure is the third building on the same site to be used as the State House...
in Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
and later the first supervising architect for the United States Treasury. The granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
stonework on the exterior and the slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roof were constructed by stonemasons from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. The Shaker brothers constructed the rest of the building themselves.