Finding aid for the Shaker Manuscripts

History of the Shakers

"What thou seest, write in a book. . ." Revelation, 1-11

This Biblical passage, found inscribed on the fly leaves of different volumes of Shaker manuscripts, was conscientiously implemented by the followers of the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, or, as they are more commonly known, the Shakers. From the date of their arrival from England in New York harbor on August 6, 1774, members of this religious communal society, founded and originally led by Ann Lee, were a visible, and at times controversial, minority group. Their religion, which embodied the notions of obedience, confession, and celibacy; their modes of religious worship, including the frenetic dance that led to their being called "shaking Quakers;" and their withdrawal from the world, as represented by their refusal to bear arms and to take oaths, provoked the antagonism of many of their New England neighbors who viewed the Shakers as heretics and extremists. This negative reaction, which resulted in physical as well as verbal abuse, was reason enough for the Shakers to document their activities and keep careful records of their temporal transactions. In addition, however, the growth in their numbers in New York in the 1780s, in New England in the 1790s, and in Ohio and Kentucky in the first quarter of the nineteenth century also prompted the creation of records. Members in what would total nineteen major communities by 1826 had to be apprised of refinements in matters of philosophy and theology, changes in the forms of worship, developments concerning increasing contact with the outside would, and news that dealt with common spiritual and temporal concerns. In order to accomplish this, letters were frequently exchanged, diaries and journals were kept, and key documents, which usually originated in the main communities at Watervliet and Mt. Lebanon, New York, were painstakingly copied and distributed to the other communities; concurrently, copies of important documents originating at these communities were sent to Watervliet and Mt. Lebanon. The Shakers' affinity for order and discipline can also be seen as a contributing factor to the creation of records in this manner and their careful retention through the nineteenth century.

Whereas oral agreements binding the members to a common set of beliefs sufficed for the earliest Shakers, by 1795 these agreements were replaced by written covenants. The covenants usually bound the members of a given Shaker community. In some instances, members of a given family (the typical living unit within a specific community, i.e., First Family, North Family, etc.) signed a covenant. The covenants spelled out the key element in Shaker communal philosophy, "the possession and use of a joint interest," and contained additional statements concerning faith and principle. The strictures set forth in the covenants were supplemented through the years with the appearance of various rules and regulations which were periodically revised and codified as in the case of the millennial laws of 1821 and 1845. Other documents relating to the practical considerations of community organization and order include those that concern membership, such as indentures, apprenticeship agreements, and discharges, and those concerning land, such as deeds, agreements, surveys, and maps.

Furthermore, the Shakers regularly kept accounts of their financial transactions, particularly as these relate to their contacts with non-Shakers. Representatives of this are the records relating to the sale of seeds, herbs, cloth, brooms, and other Shaker products. The large quantity of typical nineteenth century financial records, such as receipts, bills, and promissory notes, are interspersed with valuations of communal and personal property, and lists of charitable donations.

Although Shaker philosophy emphasized the community over the individual, the latter was not totally submerged. Care was extended to the maintenance of membership records, often in the forms of rolls and lists. These frequently contain the individual's birth and death date, as well as the date of reception into and, when applicable, of withdrawal from a Shaker community.

As Shaker ministers set out from the East to establish eventually the seven communities in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, regular contact was maintained with the church leaders through correspondence. Many of these letters that reflect the challenges, successes, and failures in the Midwest have survived. Scattered as the communities were throughout the northeastern United States, the letter continued to be an important means of communication. In addition, members of the Shaker hierarchy, who found it necessary to travel among the communities, frequently kept detailed journals of their experiences. Occasionally, they visited other communal sects, but more frequently they were in search of markets for their goods. Upon direction of the elders, Shaker sisters often kept daily journals of "domestic occurrences." In other instances, Shaker artisans (i.e., shoemakers, clock makers) kept journals in which they recorded their labors. In general, concerted effort was made to document the day-to-day activities of the brethren and sisters as well as the travels of the ministry, elders, and eldresses and the events of importance concerning the church.

While each Shaker originally enjoyed little economic independence, there were opportunities for individual expression. An example is the large number of autobiographies that were prepared. These, and the biographies of deceased Shaker leaders, were widely circulated among the Shaker communities. The criticism directed towards Mother Ann that continued even after her death was answered in the 1810s and 1820s by the preparation and, in some instances, publication of "testimonies." The latter contained individual accounts by Shakers attesting to the high moral character of Mother Ann and other Shaker leaders. Testimonies were again prepared in the 1840s as Shakers were called upon to testify to their belief in the acceptance of Shaker religious tenets. Many of these testimonies begin with autobiographical accounts. The existence of these autobiographies, biographies, and testimonies reflects the fact that a large number of learned and articulate people were drawn to Shakerism. This is also evident in the series of addresses, sermons, and essays that deal with a wide range of subjects, including history, education, spiritualism, the Bible, and theological subjects.

The most unusual series of records, the inspired writings, came into being at a time when the Shakers appeared to be wavering from their original religious intent and falling victim to such worldly temptations as material prosperity. Young people were challenging the accepted wisdom of bygone leaders and showed less enthusiasm for the traditional forms of worship. The result was a decade (1838-1848) characterized by visions, prophecies, messages, and communications transmitted through visionists or instruments among the Shakers. The sources of these messages were identified as deceased Shaker leaders, Biblical figures, or other notable personages. These manifestations often contained warnings and instructions or word gifts and presents directed to individual Shakers. These were written down, carefully edited, copied, and disseminated among the communities. These messages, some of which are in the form of detailed drawings, had a profound religious, cultural, and social influence on the Shakers, and particularly on their music, art, poetry, and rituals, such as the dance. The impact on Shaker music, for example, is evident in a study of the many hymnals containing music and verse, much of which was "received" through inspiration. Songs, which generally were expressions of beliefs, were a Shaker characteristic from the Society's inception and their evolution through the years reflect the continual changes that occurred in Shaker philosophy and ritual.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the North Union Shaker Community

Scope and Content

The Shaker Manuscripts, 1723-1952 and undated, consist of covenants, laws, legal records, land records, financial records, membership records, correspondence, diaries, journals, testimonies, biographies, addresses, sermons, essays, inspired writings and drawings (also known as spirit drawings), other writings, music, poetry, recipes, prescriptions, school books, instructional texts, scrapbooks, photographs, and miscellaneous material relating to 20 Shaker communities located in 10 eastern States.

The collection has been microfilmed, and this guide describes the location of material in both the manuscript collection and microfilm.

In developing the descriptions of these materials, particularly for the bound volumes, numerous problems were encountered. Many labels affixed to the volumes years ago are inaccurate or incomplete. Title pages often do not reflect the contents of a volume. As the original volumes passed through the hands of the Shakers, empty pages were often filled with writings, entirely unrelated to the original contents of that volume. This practice was most frequently implemented by Alonzo G. Hollister (1830-1911) of Mt. Lebanon, whose notes, addenda, and writings are frequently encountered as one examines this collection. Furthermore, title pages (if they exist) of original volumes often contain variant spellings and uses of capitalization and punctuation. Where the original title appears as is, quotation marks identify them. Certain obscure or confusing titles have been ignored and replaced by more specific descriptions.

The Shakers' inconsistency in spelling proper names is reflected in this guide. The spelling of names herein generally conforms with that that appears on the original manuscripts. Where a person's name is followed by this or her terminal dates, the latter information has been taken from the Western Reserve Historical Society's Shaker Membership File which was prepared under the direction of Wallace H. Cathcart and contains cards for more than 16,000 Shakers. Also, Shaker leaders are often identified in the manuscripts and in this guide as Mother Ann [Lee], Father William [Lee], Father James [Whitaker], Mother Lucy [Wright], and Father Joseph [Meacham].

The body of manuscripts that exists in the Research Library at the Western Reserve Historical Society touches upon all aspects of the Shaker way of life. In addition to the better known Shaker principles regarding communal property, celibacy, and separation from the world, it also includes information on their beliefs and actions regarding pacificism, charitableness, equality of the sexes, theology, philosophy, ritual, and the sanctity of labor. To a lesser extent, it reflects on the Shakers' applied agricultural, mechanical, and technical skills which are embodied in the many innovative artifacts that have fortunately survived. From the lofty medium of poetry to the more practical realm of school books, recipes, and prescriptions, insights are provided into the contribution of the Shakers and forces that attended the growth, development, and decline of this most significant nineteenth century communal movement.

While the names of several of the Shaker communities changed over the years, those italicized below have been used in this guide: Alfred (Maine); Canterbury (New Hampshire) or Shaker Village; Enfield (Connecticut) or Shaker Station; Enfield (New Hampshire); Groveland (New York) or Son yea, also includes Sodus (also Sudus Bay and Port Bay); Hancock (Massachusetts) or West Pittsfield; Harvard (Massachusetts) or South Groton; Kissimmee (Florida) or Narcosee, also includes White Oak, Georgia; Mt. Lebanon (New York) or New Lebanon, also includes Canaan; North Union (Ohio); Pleasant Hill (Kentucky); Sabbathday Lake (Maine) or New Gloucester (also West Gloucester) also includes Poland Hill; Shirley (Massachusetts); South Union (Kentucky); Tyringham (Massachusetts); Union Village (Ohio) or Lebanon or Turtle Creek; Watervliet (New York) or Niskeyuna (original community); Watervliet (Ohio) or Beulah; West Union (Indiana) or Busro; and Whitewater (Ohio).

Researchers should take particular note of Series VIII: Inspired Writings. This series consists of three sub-series. The Items consist of loose sheets and booklets, which may be the original messages as recorded by the instruments, copies of these messages, or edited copies which had been prepared for publication and distribution. No attempt has been made to differentiate between originals and copies and all the inspired writings have been integrated and arranged by community and then in chronological order. The date used for this latter purpose is usually the date the message was given or received, rather than the date it was written down, copied, or edited. Days, and in some cases years, passed between the receipt of a message and its being copied or edited. The Items have been further subdivided into loose sheets (often legal size sheets) and small booklets solely in order to facilitate the storage of these diverse physical shapes. The Volumes usually consist of compilations of inspired messages and communications given at a community either to a specific instrument or over a fixed period of time. On at least two occasions, the leaders of the church asked the elders of each community to prepare such compilations. As the phenomenon of inspiration spread from the eastern communities, closer attention was given to these writings as they were read and studied in order to determine their authenticity and their compatibility with current and acceptable Shaker principles. In other instances the Volumes contain single messages, minutes of meetings at which inspired messages were given, extracts of messages, or instructions derived from the inspired writings. Drawings and Cards consist of inspired messages and gifts that were given the form of detailed and artistic illustrations. These range in size from small cards, hearts, and leaves to larger squares and rectangles. Some are executed with pen and ink on colored paper while others are done in watercolor. These have been grouped by shape, again to facilitate their storage.

Researchers should also note that this collection contains a large amount of Shaker music. Shaker songs, hymns, anthems, and music were readily copied and widely circulated among communities. At times, the hymnals themselves were circulated or taken from one community to another as its possessor would travel or relocate. Often, the transcriber chose to remain anonymous. All of these factors tend to compound the difficulty of establishing community of origin for any particular hymnal.

The music in the Shaker hymnals consists primarily of verses, although many of these are accompanied by music notations. The latter do not appear in the note patters so familiar today, but in letters which represented a particular musical note. These letters are placed above the words of the verses or on the clef, with no reference to key signature, meter, or harmony. The majority of the words are rhymed, depicting some aspect of the Shakers' religious life or faith; often the verses are attributed to divine inspiration. Two Shaker names that occur frequently as authors or composers are Rhoda Blake (1831-1895) of Mt. Lebanon and Issachar Bates (1790-1875) of Watervliet, New York; but many are unacknowledged. A number of the volumes contain personal notations by the compiler, providing some insight into the thought and personality of each; others contain diary-like accounts and newspaper clippings.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

While there are no access restrictions on this collection, researchers will be asked to use the microfilm of this collection. This guide describes the location of material in both the manuscript collection and microfilm.

The researcher should also consult PG 77 Shaker Collection Photographs; and the extensive collection of published Shaker materials available in the Research Library of the Western Reserve Historical Society.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Custodial History

This guide reflects a total reorganization of the Shaker manuscripts, a project which was begun in 1968. At that time, all of the printed items and half of the manuscripts were cataloged according to the classification scheme (BX9751-BX9793) developed by the Western Reserve Historical Society's catalogers in the 1920s and subsequently adopted by the Library of Congress. While this system has served well for the printed materials, it proved to be unsatisfactory for the manuscripts. In light of this situation, which was compounded by the discovery, in a hidden cupboard, of boxes of uncataloged and unprocessed financial records, letters, testimonies, and inspired writings, the decision was made to redo the entire collection in closer accord with archival, albeit arbitrary, principles. The facts that so many years had passed since the arrival of the crates of this Shaker material and that the available records concerning provenance and the interrelationships between items were inadequate caused this process to be extremely laborious and time-consuming. However, in addition to better enabling the Western Reserve Historical Society to store, service, and preserve this unique collection, it is hoped that this new arrangement will make the Shaker manuscripts more meaningful to potential users.

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 3944 Shaker Manuscripts, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.

Traditionally, researchers have cited the material in this collection by series Roman numeral, sub-series letter, and folder or volume number, particularly when using the microfilm. Regardless of the citation format, researchers should include the manuscript number, collection title, and repository identification.

Acquisition Information

Forward by Frederick C. Crawford, President, and Meredith B. Colket, Jr., Director, Western Reserve Historical Society, October 1974

Shakerism, which had its beginning in America with the arrival from England in 1774 of its leader, Mother Ann Lee, flowered in the nineteenth century. While the Shakers were never very large in number, their activities and accomplishments have stimulated a wide interest throughout modern America.

In 1911, as many Shaker communities were dying out, Wallace H. Cathcart, President (later Director) of the Western Reserve Historical Society and an avid bibliophile, began collecting Shaker memorabilia. Undoubtedly his interests had been aroused by the former Shaker community, North Union Village, that had adjoined Cleveland, Ohio. That very year the area in which the village had been located was being developed as a Cleveland suburb appropriately named Shaker Heights.

Cathcart began his collection by purchasing Shaker books on the open market. He then solicited one of the leading Shakers of the day, Alonzo G. Hollister of Mt. Lebanon, New York, who agreed to send Shaker materials to Cleveland where they would be preserved for future generations. Following Hollister's death, Cathcart developed a close friendship with Eldress M. Catherine Allen of Mt. Lebanon who appreciated the importance of the work he was doing and gave him full support. It was due in fact to the cooperation of the Shakers themselves that the collection came to be what it is today. The Shaker collection, which grew rapidly, soon included hundreds of books and broadsides, archives of various communities, manuscripts of individual members, inspirational drawings, and such museum pieces as Shaker clothing, furniture, utensils, implements, and manufactures.

The story of the growth of the Cathcart collection into one of national preeminence has been well told by James W. Gilreath in the July-October, 1973 issue of The Journal of Library History. The books and broadsides, which are believed to comprise over 90 percent of the known Shaker imprints, are described in the bibliography of Shaker literature compiled by Mary L. Richmond. The museum pieces form part of the collections of the History Museum of the Western Reserve Historical Society, some of which are invariably on display. The manuscripts, archives, inspirational drawings, and photographs are collectively regarded here as manuscripts.

The preparation of a guide to the manuscripts remained a challenge even though many of the manuscripts had been arranged and described under Cathcart's direction. There was a definite need to rearrange the collection and to integrate much material that had not been previously cataloged. Because of the uncertainty of the provenance or the overlapping nature of much of the material, the final arrangement and description of the material presented a difficult problem. This problem was met and the present guide became possible. Its compiler, Kermit J. Pike, had already gained much experience in compiling the general Guide to the Manuscripts and Archives of the Western Reserve Historical Society (1972).

This guide will not only inform interested persons everywhere of the nature and extent of the Shaker collection, but will also facilitate the publication, in microfilm format, of the material so that it can be consulted in libraries throughout the United States. The Western Reserve Historical Society is especially pleased to present A Guide to Shaker Manuscripts on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the arrival of Mother Ann Lee in America.

Processing Information

The Western Reserve Historical Society is grateful to the following for their contributions that made possible the arrangement and description of the Shaker Manuscripts and the publication of this guide. The entire project was initiated by a special grant from the Shaker Savings Association, Shaker Heights, Ohio. The printing of this guide was backed in large measure by Mrs. Frances Payne Bolton. Important additional support was received from Mr. Clayton G. Hale, Trustee of the Western Reserve Historical Society, and from Mrs. Otto G. Voss, Mrs. John O. McWilliams, Mrs. James J. Nance, and an anonymous donor.

The preparation of this guide was significantly aided by the efforts of three Western Reserve Historical Society staff members. John J. Large, Jr. began the reorganization of the Shaker manuscripts in 1968. During the next four years, working on a part time basis, Mr. Large read through the many volumes of Shaker manuscripts in order to determine the appropriate series for each, and to identify authors, communities, dates, and other information worthy of inclusion in the descriptions of each volume. Early in his archival career, Dennis Harrison was confronted by boxes and stacks of unbound manuscripts, which he processed in a manner which facilitated the incorporation of these items into the final arrangement and description scheme. Susan Yellen typed the successive drafts of this guide, re-labeled volumes and folders, counted pages in the many volumes which lacked page numbers, and proofread the manuscript.

Early in the project, Mary Lou Conlin and Miss Cathy Conlin compiled information for each volume of Shaker music from which many of the descriptions that appear in this guide were taken.

Suggestions proffered by researchers, as well as the sympathy and understanding they evinced while they themselves labored under severe handicaps during the reorganization process, were appreciated.

The collection was microfilmed by the Microfilming Corporation of America, 21 Harristown Road, Glen Rock, New Jersey, in 1976. This guide describes the location of material in both the manuscript collection and microfilm.

Lastly, Margaret Burzynski-Bays undertook the task of transcribing this guide to conform with the rules and structure of Encoded Archival Description (EAD) in 2013 so that it is available to a global audience via the Internet. Her finding aid has created the first comprehensive guide to the location of the Shaker Manuscripts in both their physical containers and reels of microfilm.

Other Finding Aid

The researcher should also consult A Guide to Shaker Manuscripts In the Library of the Western Reserve Historical Society With an Inventory of Its Shaker Photographs, by Kermit J. Pike, Chief Librarian, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio, 1974. It was typeset by Mag-Tape Composition, Inc. of Cleveland, Ohio, and printed by The Emerson Press, Inc. of Cleveland, Ohio. The Pike Guide includes the page number counts of each folder and volume described in this finding aid.

Detailed Description of The Collection