History

The Era of Manifestations
In the mid-19th century, the Shakers experienced a religious revival called the Era of Manifestations, or "Mother’s Work." With the gradual decline of Believers who had known Mother Ann Lee personally, new Believers sought to reconnect with the original messages of Shakerism. 

From 1837 to the mid-1850s, this period saw a great deal of excitement and religious fervor in the communities. Meetings were closed to the “World’s People” as Shakers had visions, spoke in tongues, and communicated with spirits. Believers in each community were divinely inspired to consecrate the highest piece of land as a “feast ground” and install a “fountain stone.” The feast was a spiritual one, and the “fountain” offered the water of life for the Believers.

This fountain stone is the only surviving example of a fountain stone from a Shaker feast ground. It was installed in 1847 at the community at Groveland in Western New York. The carved inscription states in part, “Here have I opened a living fountain of holy and eternal waters.”

How the Shakers Championed Equality in Early America
The Shakers were revolutionary in their attitudes toward equality. To the Shakers, all are equal in the eyes of God, and therefore all are to be treated with respect. The Shakers accepted converts of any race or ethnicity to their communities as equal members. African Americans joined and held equal status with their white brethren inside the confines of the village.

Sister Phoebe Lane was born in Cornwall, NY, in 1785. Her father, Prime, joined the Shakers at Watervliet in 1802 accompanied by his daughters, Phoebe and Betty. When Prime rejected the Shakers, his daughters decided to remain. Because slavery was still legal in New York State, Prime sued the Society claiming his daughters as property. The New York State Supreme Court ultimately ruled that the women were free to act for themselves. Phoebe remained with the Watervliet Community for 74 years until she died in 1881.