Pittsfield, Mass., otherwise the commercial center and county seat of Berkshire County, also contains 750 sprawling acres buffeted by the gently sweeping greenery of the Berkshires where time hasn’t so much stood still as been preserved, celebrated and made vital.
Oh, and goats will walk all over your back there, too.
Hancock Shaker Village, joining the town of Hancock and city of Pittsfield, is not a re-creation of a long-gone, British-born religious community that ventured east in the 18th century from its first American settlement in Colonie (then known as Watervliet); it is that community.
An outpost of the Protestant utopian sect — known for its devotion to celibacy, pacifism, communal living and the physical-style of worship that earned the religion its name — thrived at this location from the late 1700s until the Shakers closed it in 1960 and sold it to local nonprofit group that reopened it the following year as a living, open-air museum presenting the lives and works of the Shakers to eager visitors.
More than 20 historic buildings, many of them still actively producing the furniture and crafts for which the Shakers are famed internationally, are maintained, and many of them are accessible and tourable. There are also approximately 22,000 artifacts and historic pieces on display throughout, showcasing clothes and textiles, tools and equipment, art, glassware, baskets and much more.
It’s truly possible to lose yourself and be transported back to a purposely simpler time, as long as you skillfully avert your eyes from the invading school trip groups, modern-dressed folks wielding cellphones and cars whizzing along the nearby road. The emphasis on authenticity over kitsch and the impressive attention to detail make for a haunting (in a good way) and immersive experience.
Meander around the grounds and take a seat in the one-room school where the group educated their own children for more than a century and a half. Learn about the Shakers’ innovative agricultural techniques on the still-working farm, where the traditions of the people dedicated to creating a “Heaven on Earth” are paired with modern, respectful technology.
Marvel at the deceptive simplicity of the Round Stone Barn, the symbol of Hancock Shaker Village and just one of the things that landed it on the National Register of Historic Places in 1968.
But what about the goats, you ask?
Here’s where the 21st century makes its presence known. Saturdays from June through September each year the Village offers goat yoga classes outside on the farm, where you plop your mat down in the middle of the farm’s own furry, friendly trip of goats and get your Downward-Facing Dog on, all to the soothing sounds of maa-maste.
And if you know anything about Hancock Shaker Village it might well be its springtime Baby Animals Festival which just celebrated its 20th anniversary. Daily each April and May you can commune and cuddle with the Village’s newest residents — newly born pigs, lambs, chicks, calves and, of course, goats. But the festival also includes behind the scenes tours, hayrides, pony rides, livestock talks and demonstrations of weaving, woodworking, blacksmithing, dyeing, spinning and more.
Another annual event is the old-fashioned Country Fair held each September, with this year’s being its 25th. In addition to all the fun, food and farm-centric activities integral to fairs, this one also includes things like live bands, beekeepers, craft beer and cidermakers and demonstrations of Shaker music and dance.
Throughout the year, there are galas, breakfasts, winter festivals, lectures, exhibits, Easter brunches and demonstrations.
And each December, the holidays are celebrated in ways both sparse and spectacular. Last year, the Village held its inaugural Hancock Holiday Lights, a month-long, “multi-sensory” experience that combines new and old. A nighttime stroll through the Village and in-and-out of historic buildings decorated in 19th-century holiday finery, the paths lit by candles, enchant you as you view five modern art-light projections. You can also say goodnight to the animals before wrapping yourself in blankets and enjoying cocktails by a fire.
It’s hard to know what true Shakers would make of the other modern-day addition to the Village: a series of Friday Back Porch Concerts each summer featuring some of today’s best singer-songwriters and musical acts. One supposes audience members could always groove along to the music in that trademark, reverent Shaker style.
This year’s schedule includes: Boston-based soul-rock singer Ali McGuirk on July 1; multi-instrumentalist old-time music advocate and former member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops Hubby Jenkins on July 22; folk-rock duo the Nields on Aug. 12; and musical scholar and performer, keeper of the African American folk music tradition, Jake Blount on Sept. 2.
Hancock Shaker Village
1843 West Housatonic St., Pittsfield, Mass.
413-443-0188
hancockshakervillage.org
Free-$20
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