100 Years in 100 Days: Shaker Meeting House

Shaker Heights Patch is celebrating the 100 years of Shaker Heights history by creating an online scrapbook. Each day for 100 days, we'll feature a photograph that helps tell the story of Shaker Heights

Today's photo features the meeting house of the North Union Shaker community.

The community was formed in 1822 by members of the United Society of Believers in the Second Appearing of Christ. The sect was dubbed Shakers because of their ecstatic religious practices.

The North Union community was one of the last established in the United States. It was organized by Ralph Russell, who'd joined the Shaker community near Lebanon, Ohio. When he returned to his family's property, he established the new community on land he renamed "The Valley of God's Pleasure."

Shakers believed in celibacy and pacifism. The sexes were strictly separated; the meeting house had separate entrances for men and women. They were also known for the high quality of their products, including furniture, woven goods, seeds and produce.

The sect declined after the Civil War, when the nation switched to an industrialized economy. Only one community remains, the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Community in New Gloucester Maine. The North Union Shaker community disbanded in 1889, with only 27 members. The land was eventually the Van Sweringen brothers for $1 million in 1905.

Sources: "North Union Shaker Community" - Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, "The Shakers" Shaker Historic Trail, National Park Service, Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village

You can join our celebration of Shaker Heights history. Share your memories in the comments. Or upload your photos and we'll feature them in this scrapbook. Follow #ShakerCentennial on Twitter.