Summary of time:
· Rain
· Hancock Shaker village
· Drive back to Boston
· Train to Chicago
Handy hints –
§ Get localised maps, hints of things to go and do or see.
§ Be prepared for all types of weather.
My time with the car is coming to an end, and also my time on the east coast, but it was time to move on again, the weather was not promising for anywhere, so i took a meandering drive on back roads through south Vermont, and headed into Massachusetts. I wanted to see the Shaker Village, a Christian Community that was based on simple lifestyle...all working together, but some practises that may not fully stand up in the society we live in today, but actually i learnt, not only were they an evangelical all singing, all dancing, worship community, but they were also into some forward thinking and inventions that we use today...the washing machine!
There is a village nr Pittsfield, west Massachusetts, so i headed that way, passing through Williamstown, a college town...old traditional buildings (brick), and on down to Pittsfield. The weather was getting worse. A torrential downpour in fact...it didn’t look an inspiring place to stay, so i headed back up to Williamstown, finding a nice place to stop. I later found out that Pittsfield had suffered flooded roads, and several inches of rain that is not seasonal, and caused some upset in the town.
Thursday i headed off to the Hancock Village. It was interesting seeing how the communities lived, their beliefs, and the fact that they came from Manchester, UK. They community got their name “The Shakers”, because as they worshipped God, they danced and shook so violently. It was not well met in England, so they moved over to America, and several communities grew from the first one. They had strong beliefs about men and women being separated. There were designated male and female roles, and most of these roles were performed in separate sister and brother houses.
Laundry was in the same building as woodwork, as they both used the water supplied by the reservoir that they had built, although there were separate entrances.
The main building, which housed kitchens, dining, bedrooms, worship/community room, was split by an invisible line down the middle. Separate entrances for the brothers and sisters, they sat on separate sides of the dining room, and the bedrooms were also separated by this invisible wall. They were staircases, for each side. The only exception was the dining room for those in charge, two brothers and two sisters, who had a separate dining area.
Visitors to the community would have to go to the respect side for meeting with members of the community.
It was really interesting about the whole lifestyle, the self sufficiency – farm, gardens, ice house, woodwork, blacksmiths, wool making – but they also produced stuff which was sold to the “outside”. They were well known for woodwork – chairs, cabinets, round boxes. Also interesting was those on laundry duty, did it for everyone, it was seen as an act of service, part of their worship of God. There was no talking during the work, singing was the order of the day. Outsiders, men, were hired for certain jobs, as the community grew smaller, and they had separate accommodation away from the community.
They also ran a small school, which was not only attended by children of the community but also others from surrounding farms.
I spent most of the day, moving around, seeing the buildings, displays of what they had done, and even saw a demonstration on the water turbine, and the green technology that they had since the late 1800’s. There were also a few scatter showers, but that didn’t really matter. The lunch from the cafe was excellent.
In this village, there are no Shakers left.
Afterwards, despite it being cloudy, i decided to take a scenic route that would take me up Mount Greylock, it was a nice drive, but the top of the mountain was covered in cloud, although drop 100ft and the views were amazing, right across into New York state.
The next day i was returning the car to Boston, not actually due until Saturday morning, but i was due to be on a train to Chicago then, the weather was glorious...really too nice to be stuck in a car. Before i set off, i decided to go for a wander around Williamstown, and see some of the lovely buildings that make up the town, and really if there was no college, there wouldn’t be anything here, there was not really much besides. It was nice to go for a wander though. There were a couple of good museums, but i didn’t really have the time. Then it was head east and back to Boston.
It was fairly easy to get to Boston, but the instructions to get back to drop the car off were not easy to follow, there was a one way bit and restricted access part, that was not really explained, and when you’re trying to navigate and drive in Friday afternoon traffic, means that you get slightly lost. But soon sorted, and a lift to the hostel...familiar ground.
It was stifling in Boston, i had a couple of things to get, and also dinner...i went to Legal Fish...a great place for lobster, crab, oyster....but i settled for a lovely tuna steak and fries.
Next morning it was up, and go for a walk, enjoy the sun, before the train ride...well i say enjoy, it was so warm..and it was only 9am – i was sweating! I was not going to lug my stuff up and down metro stairs, so i caught a taxi to the station, and was able to enjoy a nice coffee, and brunch before the train came.
· Rain
· Hancock Shaker village
· Drive back to Boston
· Train to Chicago
Handy hints –
§ Get localised maps, hints of things to go and do or see.
§ Be prepared for all types of weather.
My time with the car is coming to an end, and also my time on the east coast, but it was time to move on again, the weather was not promising for anywhere, so i took a meandering drive on back roads through south Vermont, and headed into Massachusetts. I wanted to see the Shaker Village, a Christian Community that was based on simple lifestyle...all working together, but some practises that may not fully stand up in the society we live in today, but actually i learnt, not only were they an evangelical all singing, all dancing, worship community, but they were also into some forward thinking and inventions that we use today...the washing machine!
There is a village nr Pittsfield, west Massachusetts, so i headed that way, passing through Williamstown, a college town...old traditional buildings (brick), and on down to Pittsfield. The weather was getting worse. A torrential downpour in fact...it didn’t look an inspiring place to stay, so i headed back up to Williamstown, finding a nice place to stop. I later found out that Pittsfield had suffered flooded roads, and several inches of rain that is not seasonal, and caused some upset in the town.
Thursday i headed off to the Hancock Village. It was interesting seeing how the communities lived, their beliefs, and the fact that they came from Manchester, UK. They community got their name “The Shakers”, because as they worshipped God, they danced and shook so violently. It was not well met in England, so they moved over to America, and several communities grew from the first one. They had strong beliefs about men and women being separated. There were designated male and female roles, and most of these roles were performed in separate sister and brother houses.
Laundry was in the same building as woodwork, as they both used the water supplied by the reservoir that they had built, although there were separate entrances.
The main building, which housed kitchens, dining, bedrooms, worship/community room, was split by an invisible line down the middle. Separate entrances for the brothers and sisters, they sat on separate sides of the dining room, and the bedrooms were also separated by this invisible wall. They were staircases, for each side. The only exception was the dining room for those in charge, two brothers and two sisters, who had a separate dining area.
Visitors to the community would have to go to the respect side for meeting with members of the community.
It was really interesting about the whole lifestyle, the self sufficiency – farm, gardens, ice house, woodwork, blacksmiths, wool making – but they also produced stuff which was sold to the “outside”. They were well known for woodwork – chairs, cabinets, round boxes. Also interesting was those on laundry duty, did it for everyone, it was seen as an act of service, part of their worship of God. There was no talking during the work, singing was the order of the day. Outsiders, men, were hired for certain jobs, as the community grew smaller, and they had separate accommodation away from the community.
They also ran a small school, which was not only attended by children of the community but also others from surrounding farms.
I spent most of the day, moving around, seeing the buildings, displays of what they had done, and even saw a demonstration on the water turbine, and the green technology that they had since the late 1800’s. There were also a few scatter showers, but that didn’t really matter. The lunch from the cafe was excellent.
In this village, there are no Shakers left.
Afterwards, despite it being cloudy, i decided to take a scenic route that would take me up Mount Greylock, it was a nice drive, but the top of the mountain was covered in cloud, although drop 100ft and the views were amazing, right across into New York state.
The next day i was returning the car to Boston, not actually due until Saturday morning, but i was due to be on a train to Chicago then, the weather was glorious...really too nice to be stuck in a car. Before i set off, i decided to go for a wander around Williamstown, and see some of the lovely buildings that make up the town, and really if there was no college, there wouldn’t be anything here, there was not really much besides. It was nice to go for a wander though. There were a couple of good museums, but i didn’t really have the time. Then it was head east and back to Boston.
It was fairly easy to get to Boston, but the instructions to get back to drop the car off were not easy to follow, there was a one way bit and restricted access part, that was not really explained, and when you’re trying to navigate and drive in Friday afternoon traffic, means that you get slightly lost. But soon sorted, and a lift to the hostel...familiar ground.
It was stifling in Boston, i had a couple of things to get, and also dinner...i went to Legal Fish...a great place for lobster, crab, oyster....but i settled for a lovely tuna steak and fries.
Next morning it was up, and go for a walk, enjoy the sun, before the train ride...well i say enjoy, it was so warm..and it was only 9am – i was sweating! I was not going to lug my stuff up and down metro stairs, so i caught a taxi to the station, and was able to enjoy a nice coffee, and brunch before the train came.
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