{"product_id":"the-people-called-shakers","title":"The People Called Shakers","description":"\u003cp\u003eFor 35 years  the author of this book has been a devoted student of the history  beliefs  and ways of The United Society of Believers in Christs Second Appearing  better known as the Shakers. Out of his extensive research into manuscripts and primary sources and his conversations with friends in present-day Shaker communities has come a warm  illuminating history  the most thorough ever written on these pious  humble people and the distinct impression they made on American life. The book opens with an introductory assessment of the Shaker contribution to the history of American social experimentation  as seen from the modern point of view. There follows the often amazing story of Ann Lee and the origins of the movement in eighteenth-century England  its emigration to New England  the early Shaker experiments in communism  and the expansion to the American West. The author then pauses to examine in detail the ideology behind the Shaker dedication to physical labor; Shaker industry and design  including a discussion of the spare  utilitarian folk art so popular today; the highly formalized mode of worship  with its lively songs and dances and its often violent emotionalism; strange manifestations during the revival periods of the 1830s and 40s; the rigid internal organization of the Shaker community and its original economic and sociological theories; Shaker relations with the outside world; and the decline of the sect after the Civil War. This edition is the first to include the authors valuable notes  as well as the original appendixes containing the complete text of the Millennial Laws  a statistical breakdown of all the Shaker communities  and a bibliography. This material is especially useful to students of American social and religious movements  but the authors reliance upon original manuscript material and contemporary illustrations lend this book an exciting immediacy that makes it a pleasure for all readers interested in fascinating people and unique ways of life. An excellent history of one of the most interesting of American religious cults.  Nation. Satisfies the exacting standards of historical scholarship and promises at the same time to enlighten and hold the interest of the general reader.  Saturday Review. A substantial contribution to American history.  The New York Times.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44945278271541,"sku":"ByrdShop_0486210812","price":60.53,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780486210810.jpg?v=1769881067","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-people-called-shakers","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}