Discover & Learn

The East House 1810

The Shakers built this structure as a Trustees’ Office in 1810. It was originally located where the present Trustees' Office stands and was moved to its current location in 1833. Elder Henry Blinn, writing much later, noted that

... a spinning jenny [of 80 spindles] was placed in the basement & all the wool that passed through the machines at the Carding Mill, for the Church family, was spun at this place [in the basement]. The first loft was appropriated to the Garden Seed business for assorting, papering, packing, etc. The second loft was used by the Caretakers & little girls, as a workshop and for sleeping apartments. The whole building has for many years been used for the little girls.

The house continued to be used as a dwelling for girls, accommodating eight at a time, as well as two sisters. In 1916 some of the sisters created a small darkroom for photography in the basement.

Today the East House is used as a residence by the museum's director and is not open to the public.

Source: David R. Starbuck, Neither Plain Nor Simple: New Perspectives on the Canterbury Shakers