Scope and Contents:
The Shakers (the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing) date from the late eighteenth century. This collection contains microfilm copies of papers from Shaker colonies in Kentucky (Pleasant Hill and South Union), New York (New Lebanon), New Hampshire (Canterbury), and Ohio (Union Village).
The papers include account books, diaries, journals, church records and documents, meeting minutes, correspondence, religious tracts, and song books. The collection also contains copies of religious journals, including the "Record of Visions, Messages, and Communications Given by Divine Inspiration" and the "Society of Believer's Daybook."
Three reels are of the original manuscripts of the Church of Pleasant Hills at Harrodsburg, KY, and were microfilmed by the University of Kentucky Library. The microfilm reel of the papers of Union Village, Ohio, was made from originals in the Library of Congress. The remaining nine reels are of originals at Western Reserve Historical Society in Cleveland.