Lillian Barlow

Lillian Barlow
BornMay 11, 1876
Greenville, Mississippi, U.S.
DiedFebruary 7, 1942 (aged 65)
New Lebanon, New York
Occupation(s)Woodworker, community leader
OrganizationShaker community

Lillian Ida Barlow (May 11, 1876 – February 7, 1942) was an American crafter and community leader. For many years, she ran the woodworking shop at the Mount Lebanon Shaker Village in New York State. She is considered "the last Shaker chair maker".[1]

Early life and education

Barlow was born in 1876, in Greenville, Mississippi.[2][3] By age 10, she was an orphan and living in New York state.[4]

Career

Barlow joined the Shaker community at Mount Lebanon, New York in 1886,[1] when she was ten years old.[4][5] In 1909 her relationship with her co-worker Ernest Pick raised concerns, and "she did admit that possibly she had shown more friendship for Elder Pick than she should have done."[4] Pick was dismissed as an elder by Bishop M. Catherine Allen, and left the community for about ten years.[5][6][7]

Barlow ran or co-ran the community's woodshop for many years, and made it a success,[1][8] especially producing chairs for sale.[7][9] She was also involved in a short-lived venture with Burpee to market Shaker-grown vegetables as canned goods.[10] Barlow was the last Shaker to make chairs at Mount Lebanon, before the Shaker community sold its property there in 1940.[1][3]

Death and legacy

Barlow died in 1942, at age 63, in New Lebanon, New York.[7][11] Chairs attributed to Barlow's craftsmanship are still valued by collectors, and several of her projects and work items are in the collection of the Shaker Museum. There are letters written by Lillian Barlow in the Winterthur Library.[12] In 2023 she was one focus of a Women's History Month event in Spencertown, New York.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Paterwic, Stephen J. (2017-06-15). Historical Dictionary of the Shakers. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 35–36. ISBN 978-1-5381-0231-2.
  2. ^ "Sister Lillian Barlow (1876–1942)". Shaker Museum. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
  3. ^ a b c "Women's History in the Hudson Valley: Ten Stories from Columbia and Dutchess Counties" (2023): 4-5.
  4. ^ a b c "Sad Romance of the Shakers' Queer Community". The Kansas City Post. 1909-03-26. p. 4. Retrieved 2024-05-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "Charges Jealousy in Shaker Colony; Sister Lillian Barlow Lays Dismissal of Elder Pick to Rivalry". The New York Times. 1909-03-21. p. 5. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
  6. ^ "The Shakeup in Shakerdom; Came Through Pick's Pick of Foreign Recruits". The Sun. 1909-03-21. p. 6. Retrieved 2024-05-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b c "Shocked Shakers, Eldress is Dead; Member of Lebanon Community Exonerated of Romance 33 Years Ago". The North Adams Transcript. 1942-02-09. p. 3. Retrieved 2024-05-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Lassiter, William Laurence (1946). "Shakers and Their Furniture". New York History. 27 (3): 369–371. ISSN 0146-437X. JSTOR 23148049.
  9. ^ Muller, Charles R.; Rieman, Timothy D. (1984). The Shaker chair. Internet Archive. Canal Winchester, Ohio : Canal Press. pp. 200, 216. ISBN 978-0-9611116-0-1.
  10. ^ Miller, M. Stephen (2007). From Shaker Lands and Shaker Hands: A Survey of the Industries. UPNE. p. 105. ISBN 978-1-58465-629-6.
  11. ^ "Funeral of Shaker Member is Held". The Berkshire County Eagle. 1942-02-11. p. 22. Retrieved 2024-05-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Collection of letters written by Shakers and notes on the Canaan, N.Y., Shaker community". The Winterthur Library. Retrieved 2024-05-11.