Stereoviews of Shaker Villages

In his groundbreaking book, The Shaker Image, Elmer Pearson wrote in 1974:

The importance of the stereographic views in a visual record of Shaker history should not be underestimated. When the popularity of the stereoscope was at its peak [1870-1890’s], the Shakers, changing with the times, admitted photographers to their villages and permitted them to photograph not only the exteriors of buildings, but the interiors as well. Earlier, “the world’s people” had been permitted to enter only the offices and stores of the villages.

Pearson estimated that there are more than 350 different stereographic views of the Shakers. No single Shaker museum, library, or private collection has a complete set of Shaker stereoviews.

The Shaker stereoviews on this web site are provided by Shaker Workshops for personal study, research, and teaching. They are organized by Shaker village and, within villages, by date. To view larger images of the stereoviews, please click on the thumbnail images below.

Canterbury Shaker Village, Canterbury, New Hampshire

Church Family at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	Flower Garden at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

Sisters & Girls at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	9. Mill at the Pond at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

20. Young Student at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	List of Stereoviews in this Series Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

7. Church Family at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	12. Ox Team at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

13.The Apiary at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	Little Boys at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

Church Family at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	Herd of Cattle at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

6. Flower Garden at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	11. Hives and Bees at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

12. Cook Stoves at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	13. Dining Hall at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

14. School Room at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	21. Tebbit’s Hill at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

22. Island and Pond at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	28. Watering Trough at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

29. Bertie-Resting at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	32. Group of Shakers at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

37. Maple Sugar at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	55. The Church at Canterbury Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

5. North Family at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by H.A. Kimball, Concord, NH.	12. Ox Team at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by H.A. Kimball, Concord, NH.

15. Dining Hall at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by H.A. Kimball, Concord, NH.	17. School Room at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by H.A. Kimball, Concord, NH.

10. Trustees Office at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by H.A. Kimball, Concord, NH.	Middle Family at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by Clough & Kimball, Concord, NH.

Great Barn at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by Clough & Kimball, Concord, NH.	Mill at the Pond at Canterbury Shaker Village Published by Clough & Kimball, Concord, NH.

Enfield Shaker Village, Enfield, Connecticut

Dwelling House at Enfield, CT Shaker Village Goldsmith & Lazelle Photographers, Springfield, MA	Meeting House at Enfield, CT Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.

Sisters’ Work House at Enfield, CT Shaker Village Goldsmith & Lazelle Photographers, Springfield, MA	South Family View at Enfield, CT Shaker Village Goldsmith & Lazelle Photographers, Springfield, MA

Enfield Shaker Village, Enfield, New Hampshire

5. Looking Southeast at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	11. Veranda at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

12. Meeting House at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	16. Boys Drinking at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

18. Dining Hall at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	20. Music Lesson at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

23. Room No. 7 at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.	24. Room No. 7 at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by W.G.C. Kimball, Concord, NH.

1. Distant View of Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by C.E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.	5. Garden and Lake at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by C.E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.

9. View from Road at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by C.E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.	13. Dining Hall at Enfield, NH Shaker Village Photograph by C.E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.

19. Shaker Bridge in Enfield, NH Photograph by C.E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.	List of Stereoviews in this Series Published by Charles E. Lewis, Lebanon, NH.

Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village, Mt. Lebanon, New York

Dwelling House at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Photograph by A. B. Alden, Pittsfield, MA.	Meeting House at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Photograph by A. B. Alden, Pittsfield, MA.

Church Family at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.	School Room at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.

Road to Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.	Meeting House at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.

Great Stone Barn at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.	Shaker School at Mt. Lebanon Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.

Watervliet Shaker Village, Watervliet, New York

View of Watervliet Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.	Shaker Brothers at Watervliet Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.

Shaker Boys at Watervliet Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.	Shakers at Watervliet Shaker Village Courtesy of The New York Public Library.

Shaker Sisters at Watervliet Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.	Shaker Sisters at Watervliet Shaker Village Photograph by James Irving, Troy, NY.

Stereoscopes and the Shakers

Stereoviews (properly called “stereograph cards”) consist of two nearly identical photographs paired to produce the illusion of a single three-dimensional image when viewed through a stereoscope. Soon after Oliver Wendell Holmes invented a simplified stereoscope in Boston about 1859, the Shakers and their villages became a popular subject for photographers.

In 1872, Shaker Brother Nelson Chase of the Enfield, New Hampshire Shaker community invented a “new and Improved Pocket Stereoscope.” Click here to read a copy of the patent granted to him by the U.S. Patent Office (“Improvement in Folding Stereoscopes”, Patent No. 129,100, dated July 16, 1872). Chase’s stereoscopes are extremely rare today and are sought after by Shaker collectors.

Chase’s Improved Folding Stereoscope Photograph courtesy Stereographica.com	Chase’s Improved Folding Stereoscope Photograph courtesy of Charlton Hall Galleries

Collecting Shaker Stereoviews

If you’d like to begin collecting Shaker stereoviews or similar items, may we recommend that you contact Scott DeWolfe or Frank Wood at DeWolfe and Wood Rare Books in Alfred, Maine. Click here to see their web site, which has a special section listing Shaker material for sale. For additional items, don’t hesitate to telephone them.

Special thanks to the collectors who have agreed to make scans of their Shaker stereoviews available for use on this web page.

Additional Reading

Elmer R. Pearson & Julia Neal. The Shaker Image (Pittsifeld, Massachusetts: Hancock Shaker Village, Inc., 1994). Second and annotated edition. Annotations, appendices and index by Dr. Magda Gabor-Hotchkiss. Many of the stereoviews shown above are illustrated (in black and white) and further described, with identifications of person, buildings, dates, and photographers.