Learn more about Hancock Shaker Village today! The per capita income for the town was $22,250. Hancock is governed by the open town meeting form of government, and is governed by a board of selectmen. [1] The museum's mission statement is "to bring the Shaker story to life and preserve it for future generations.". They are renowned today for their plain architecture and furniture. Museum admission is not required to shop at Shaker Mercantile and dine in Seeds Market Cafe. Columbine blooms at Hancock Shaker Village. facebook twitter linkedin pinterest Email. Divided into six family groups along north-south and east-west axes, Hancock was a typical Shaker community with communal dwellings, craft shops, a meetinghouse, and barns. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places and declared a National Historic Landmark District in 1968. The next ring out is where the hay was stored. After enduring persecution in England, the small group of Shakers, led by … Getting Here ». The nearest private schools are in Williamstown and Pittsfield. All of the windows in the building, rather than having a 90 degree angle with the wall, form a 45 (approx.) The third ring out was where the Shaker brothers would walk to distribute the hay from the second ring to the cows standing in the fourth (outermost) ring. Today the village is a living history museum known for its Round Stone Barn, with farm animals and CSA gardens, art and craft, and dinners and music. [13] The dwelling, like the barn, shows the Shakers' prosperity, as well as their appreciation of the benefits of space, ventilation, and labor-saving modern conveniences such as water piped indoors. All of the demonstrations and info sessions were super informative and interesting and I loved wandering the shaker grounds! Visitors also praised Hancock Shakers' products, including boxes "of beautiful workmanship" and garden seeds. Here, Burdick and Mangiardi have a lot of practice at introducing people to piglets and ducklings.Having a lamb handed to you as easily as a loaf of bread is a gift. Population Estimates", "1990 Census of Population, General Population Characteristics: Massachusetts", "1980 Census of the Population, Number of Inhabitants: Massachusetts", Senators and Representatives by City and Town, Hancock Shaker Village, Shaker Historic Trail, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hancock,_Massachusetts&oldid=967216992, Pages with non-numeric formatnum arguments, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 11 July 2020, at 21:58. Jersey calves looked up questioningly. The museum also hosts events year-round — farm dinners with thinkers and writers, concerts and folk music festivals, and makers’ days passing on the traditions of spare Shaker design. U.S. Route 20 passes through the southern end of town, from Pittsfield to the New York state line. After the revival dissipated in the summer of 1780, many ministers and congregants from these churches investigated the Shakers and began converting. Today, the Shaker community remains active at Sabbathday Lake in Maine, with three Believers. While there is a short movie in the visitor's center, it gives an overview of the Shakers themselves and not what you see in the buildings. After Father James’ death in 1787, Elder Joseph Meacham succeeded as the first American-born leader of the Shaker movement. (413) 443-0188 Even better news that you spent time with generations of family! The floor of the outermost ring is split level, with the inner part raised up 3 inches (76 mm). A young woman named Ann Leegradually emerged as the primary leader of the group. HSV explores Shaker beliefs and design through contemporary art, including an installation in the silo of music composed by Brad Wells, director of the Grammy-winning ensemble Roomful of Teeth (founded in the Berkshires). This ventilation is necessary to help draw the moisture up and out of the hay which prevents mold from growing and the hay from eventually spontaneously combusting. The Hancock settlement was founded in 1783 and was active through 1960. Susan’s grandfather lived in this house; it has been in the family almost 100 years. Burdick was then (in April 2012) director of interpretations at Hancock Shaker Village, and he and Bill Mangiardi, director of farm and facilities, had brought us to meet the new arrivals. They danced and sang, and got on day to day, with the men on one side of the room and women on the other. A group of dissident Christians, they practiced ecstatic worship and egalitarianism. In a normal season the Hancock Shaker Village, which was founded sixty years ago near Pittsfield, is open from April through December. Because the barn was round, the wagons could enter, unload the hay and then exit the barn without ever having to back up. On the National Historic Register, it is the most comprehensively interpreted Shaker site in the world, and the oldest working farm in … Much of the experience is outdoor or requires traveling between buildings, therefore prepare accordingly. Travel well. [16], Last edited on 4 September 2020, at 19:35, U.S. National Register of Historic Places, National Register of Historic Places listings in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, List of National Historic Landmarks in Massachusetts, "Watervliet Shaker Historic District (U.S. National Park Service)", About the Village | Hancock Shaker Village, "Bob Vila's Guide to Historic Homes of America", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hancock_Shaker_Village&oldid=976750930, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 4 September 2020, at 19:35.