Canterbury Shaker Village Loses Roger Gagne
Canterbury Shaker Village lost one of its beloved supporters, Roger Gagne, who served on the board from 1994-2012 much of that time as Chair of the Building Committee, contributing much to the Village’s ongoing construction and restoration projects. He passed away peacefully on June 14, 2022 surrounded by his four sons.
As a former engineer with architectural experience as well as an artist, Roger spent 10 years researching in the photographic and archeological archives with the staff at CSV in order to recreate create a series of masterful and detailed renderings of the Shakers’ North Family in sepia tones and watercolors as it existed from 1880-1910. The North Family was established in 1801 as a haven for new Shaker converts. Over a period of 93 years, it grew to include 20-25 buildings. Abandoned by 1894, most of the buildings were taken down in the 1920’s and today only the brick Trustees Building remains. Roger also completed a series of watercolors and drawings of the Second Family which stood just north of the Shaker cemetery on both sides of the road. In later years, the North and Second Families were combined until their numbers dwindled and the members were integrated into the Church Family which is CSV as we know it today.
Roger was a generous man, selfless with his time and talent and passionate about his art and Canterbury Shaker Village. He will be remembered by his friends at Canterbury for his many contributions to the Village, especially these important historic recreations.