|
|
Meeting Friday December 4th at 7:30pm |
Western Shaker |
|
The
first Shaker communities in America were established in New England at the time
of the Revolutionary War. In 1805, three missionaries were sent from the
Eastern lead community, New Lebanon, N.Y., to establish Shaker communities in
the West. At that time, Ohio and Indiana were part of the Northwest Territory
while Kentucky was known as the Southwest. Great religious revivals had spread
through these areas in the West and the Shakers hoped to make inroads with
those who attended the revivals.
Seven Western Shaker communities
were established. There were four in Ohio: Union Village, west of Lebanon;
Watervliet, southeast of Dayton; White Water in western Hamilton County; North
Union near Cleveland, now Shaker Heights. In Kentucky, Pleasant Hill is located
south of Lexington while South Union is near Bowling Green. In Indiana, West
Union was north of Vincennes along the Wabash River.
In 1985/86 the Western Shaker
Study Group was founded, an area-wide group, with the stated purpose of
learning about and sharing the history and heritage of all the Shaker
communities west of the Alleghenies.
WESTERN SHAKER STUDY GROUP
Programs are held the first Friday of every other month at 7:30 at Otterbein
Lebanon Campus Center (Phillippi Hall) or other announced locations.
The Western Shaker Study Group Presents Its December Program!
Spirit of the Shaker Holiday Season
Western Shaker Singers
The Western Shaker Singers research the musical and poetic expression of Shakers in the West, with a goal of sharing that rich creative heritage with the public. We are volunteers who bring many years of experience and interest in Shaker research, Shaker music interpretation, frontier religion, and choral singing.
We love to delve into the Shaker manuscript materials scattered among libraries and museum collections to discover and reconstruct the abundant Shaker songs and hymns of western origin! This year we have been studying sermons and poems composed by such well-known western Shaker men and women as Issachar Bates, Richard McNemar, Sally Eades and Hortency Hooser. The program will present a selection of holiday season songs, poetry, reconstructed sermons, and other examples of the creative expression of the early Shaker West.
Friday, December 4, 2009, 7:30 pm
Otterbein Retirement Community, Phillippi Hall Meeting Room
580 North St. Rt. 741, Lebanon, OH
Free and Open to the Public!
Please bring a dessert item to share this evening!
Otterbein is located on Rt. 741, one mile north of the junction of Rt. 741 and US 63, between Lebanon, OH, and I-75. From I-75, take Exit 29 (US 63), head east on US 63 to Rt. 741.
|
Free and open to the public! Refreshments served! |
|
Directions: Otterbein-Lebanon is located on Rt. 741, one mile north of the junction of Rt. 741 and US 63, between Lebanon, OH, and I-75. From I-75, take Exit 29 (US 63), head east on US 63 to Rt. 741. Turn left at the traffic light. |
Mark your calendar for these upcoming programs.
events for next year coming soon
WSSG OFFICERS
- Chair, Lois Madden
- Program Co-Chair for Programs - Cheryl Bauer and Mary Lue Warner
- Treasurer, Amy Luncan
- Secretary, Elizabeth Pursley and Martha Boice
For information, contact: jbshaker@gmail.com
FROM THE SHAKER CHAIR, Lois Madden
It’s that time of year, again! The holidays will be upon us before we know it. I’m always amazed, as well as unprepared, when this time of year arrives. My paternal Grandma always said that time speeds up the older one gets. (The newsletter editor can affirm this!) Her observation is validated every December when my birthday sneaks up on me!
This year has been especially hard for many folks. The approaching holidays bring with them their attendant stresses and deadlines—there just isn’t enough time to do all the things we need to accomplish before year’s end. Yet, somehow, we always manage to pull it off and get through the craziness of the holiday season, albeit exhausted.
As the veil of winter descends upon us, and the obligations of the holiday season consume us, I hope you’ll all take that much needed break and join us for our Annual Holiday Program of Shaker Music. As in years past, we’d like to ask all who are able, to bring a holiday goodie to share as we gather in fellowship after the program. I can’t think of a more fulfilling way to end the year than to share it with old friends as we celebrate the gift of Shaker song.
Please invite a friend to join us as we end 2009 and look ahead to another year of wonderful WSSG programs in 2010.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
LEBANON ANTIQUES SHOW
January 16 and 17, 2010
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday
Bowman Primary School, Hart Road and St.Rt. 123, Lebanon. Admission $6. Free Parking
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"The Shakers: Abiding inspiration in faith and design"
at Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, Lancaster, Ohio
October 2, 2009—January 3, 2020
Curator, Charles Muller.
Reports are that this Shaker exhibit is really excellent. One visitor indicated he was ready to return for another tour of the museum. Some of our WSSG members have loaned significant Shaker pieces for the exhibit. We hope you will find your way to the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio,
Reece-Peters House, 145 East Main Street, Lancaster, Ohio 43130.
Museum hours are
Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-- 4 p.m. Sunday, 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
The exhibit focuses on the Western Shaker communities in Ohio and Kentucky. Products of their income industries such as seeds, chairs, poplarware, herbal and medicinal items will be on display. It will be a rare opportunity to view several inspirational or gift drawings that are the folk art of the Shakers. Decide now when you’ll be able to get to Lancaster so you don’t miss this outstanding exhibit in Ohio.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
We are grateful for the report Jill Hreben, the new President and CEO of Otterbein Homes, Inc., has sent to bring us up to date on the possibility of using Bethany Hall as an Arts Center for Warren County.
November 10, 2009
Dear Western Shaker Study Group Members,
The Warren County Arts and Culture Center Trustees (WCACC) have concluded an extensive, thorough selection process with a unanimous agreement to choose Otterbein Homes as the site for the new facility.
Selection Process
The site selection process began nearly one year ago in November 2008. Its precursor was an extensive market study. Skystone Ryan, a Cincinnati-based arts consulting firm, conducted the site selection process at the direction of the WCACC Trustees. By the spring of 2009, the Trustees established selection criteria and directed Skystone Ryan to hold interviews or focus groups with representatives from more than forty organizations. Approximately fifteen sites were identified and evaluated using the Trustees’ selection criteria.
Four finalists were selected and were invited to respond to a formal RFP during the summer of 2009. After the consultant made multiple contacts with the final candidates, the site selection and facility committees recommended the Otterbein site with unanimous support from the WCACC Trustees.
The Otterbein site was selected because it best met the criteria that the WCACC Trustees established. Its primary advantages are its central, neutral location, a choice of sites on the Otterbein property including the potential renovation of Bethany Hall and Otterbein’s commitment to both the arts and to Warren County.
Next Steps
During the next 4-6 months, the WCACC Trustees and Otterbein representatives will proceed with a number of important activities. The currently planned activities are:
1. Careful study of alternative locations / designs at Otterbein
2. Development of a business pro forma for each alternative
3. Communication with regional arts groups about the facility and intentions for its use.
4. Decision about the design and location at Otterbein
5. A philanthropic study to determine fundraising ability.
6. Initial fundraising activities, as warranted by the philanthropic study.
An architect has been engaged to study the Bethany Hall option as well as new construction. That study is currently underway however; we anticipate it could be several months before a final determination is made. I will inform you of the future developments as they transpire.
Sincerely,
Jill C. Hreben, CEO Otterbein Homes
Our group might still sponsor a National Register application for the Shaker resources at Otterbein-Lebanon. Barbara Powers wrote in December 2008 that a strong National Register nomination might consist of creating a historic archaeological district for Union Village. This would provide a broad base for historic as well as archaeological significance. Both Bethany Hall and Marble Hall would be contributors above ground to this historic archaeological district.
* *
* * * * * * *
SHAKER ACTIVITIES AT THE OHIO DECORATIVE ARTS CENTER, LANCASTER, OHIO
A recent program flyer told you about a
Shaker exhibit at the Reese-Peters House, 145 East Main Street in
Lancaster running from October 3, 2009, to January 3, 2010.
Chuck Muller has organized the exhibit. Kerry Pierce will be offering woodworking sessions at this location as follows:
Saturday, December 5, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., making a dovetailed Shaker Candle Box.
Learn more about these classes through the webpage, www.decartsohio.org or call (740) 681-1423.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
OUR DUES
Our dues cover the calendar year and are due now for 2009. Individual dues
are $15 or family dues, $25. Please send your dues to Amy Luncan, 133 Clark
Ave., Waynesville, OH 45068. Thanks.
|
Map and legend reproduced from page
viii of "Maps of the Shaker West" by Martha Boice,
Dale Covington, and Richard Spence, |
|
WESTERN SHAKER WEBSITES
Western Shaker Study Group - http://www.rootsweb.com/~ohwarren/Shaker/wssg.htm
Western Shaker Singers - http://www.westernshakersingers.org/index.htm
Friends of White Water - http://whitewatershakervillage.org/
Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill - http://www.shakervillageky.org/
Shaker Museum at South Union - http://www.shakermuseum.com/
Historical Society of Shaker Heights - http://www.shakerhistory.com/
Union Village and Shakers of Warren County,OH- http://www.rootsweb.com/~ohwarren/Shaker/
Otterbein Lebanon Retirement Community - http://www.otterbein.org/leb/Leb_home.htm
Western
Shaker titles: Maps of the Shaker
West, Shaker Paper Dolls, a reprint of an 1850 Wholesale Herb Catalogue from
Union Village and the list of Watervliet, Ohio, names. http://www.knotgardenpress.com
Contact Jennifer
Bornemann (jbshaker@gmail.com)
if you would like to contribute any material to this page
NOTICE: All
documents and electronic images placed on the Warren County OHGenWeb site
remain the property of the contributors, who retain publication rights in
accordance with US Copyright Laws and Regulations. These documents may be used
by anyone for their personal research. Persons or organizations desiring to use
this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or their
legal representative, and contact the listed Warren County OHGenWeb coordinator
with proof of this consent.
This page created 17 January 2005 and last updated
23 November, 2009
_ 2005-2009Jennifer Bornemann & Arne H Trelvik All rights reserved