Ministry (1825)

Ministry (1825). . , Journals record frequent visits of the Ministry Elders, to and from various Shaker communities. Traffic was steady between Mt. Lebanon and Watervliet. On the second of January, 1850, Rufus Bishop recorded that "We, the Ministry, came to Wisdom's Valley through Troy, River open, we crossed on the Bridge, sleighing poor, Tavern fees, 10 cents.", While they possessed a strong set of Utopian values, the men and women living together in Shaker communities still had to work hard to put their ideals into practice. Individual conflicts did arise, and not all Shakers were equally ready to embrace equality across race and gender. Two types of leaders were selected to deal with the complex spiritual, emotional, and administrative needs of a community of hundreds of people. Elders and Eldresses tended to the religious life of the community, while the Deacons and Deaconesses ran the everyday aspect of community living such as rotation of work assignments and organization of materials and processes needed for various industries., At Watervliet, they oversaw the integration of new Shakers at the South Family, mediated disagreements, allocated resources, and assigned individuals to Families and tasks according to their skills and community needs. It was exhausting work, and even the most capable individuals sometimes requested to be relieved from duty., "Nancy Wicks is released from her lot as Second Eldress, by her own request, and takes her former lot as a Second Deaconess.", Aura White came to Watervliet from Troy in 1831. In 1846 She received a teaching certificate from the Town Superintendent of Schools and worked in the Shaker School. She eventually accepted the role of Eldress of the North Family in 1870. However, her "burden being so great" she was relieved after two years in 1872 and went to live at the Church Family. Her sibling, Nehemiah White was also a member of the Watervliet Shakers., This building, built in 1825, was used by the Church Family Elders. addition being a spiritual leader, each member of the ministry performed daily manual labor such as shoe making or tailoring. Visiting Elders and Edresses from the central ministry at Mount Lebanon stayed in the house. One elder, Chauncey Copley was a cabinetmaker who worked in a wing that was added to the building in 1850. The porch was added by Albany County in the 1930s when the building was used to house nurses working at the Ann Lee Nursing Home.