While the Adirondacks had once been considered “one unbroken wilderness” and an exceptionally harsh environment, the rise of the Massachusetts Transcendentalists in the two decades prior to the American Civil War changed the public perception of…

Spencer and Katrina Trask designed Yaddo to have a large terrace fronting the lawn, as well as a smaller covered porch. Terraces and porches were common architectural features for late-nineteenth century mansions. During the Victorian period, elite…

Up until 1776, the Public Universal Friend has been known as Jemima Wilkinson, a spirited if not incredibly precocious young Quaker woman from Cumberland, Rhode Island. In the year 1776, at the age of 24, she succumbed to a terrible illness—likely…

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27) One of the key tenets of Shakerism is the dualism of God as male and female. In accordance with this belief, gender…