List of Shaker inventions

This article contains a list of inventions by the Shakers, officially known as the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearance. Founded in the 18th century, the Shakers, a celibate sect who lived a communal lifestyle, were known for their many innovative creations in varied fields including agriculture, furniture, housework, and medicine.

Round barn, Hancock Shaker Village

Architecture

• Adjustable ventilating door transoms^[1]
• Round barn
• Sash-balance counterweight^[1]
• Shaker stairs

Food and agriculture

• Apple parer and corer^[1]
• Automatic seed planter^[1]
• Condensed milk^[1]
• Fertilizer spreader^[1]
• Pea sheller^[2]
• Rotary harrow^[1]
• Shaker Lemon Pie
• Threshing machine^[2]

Shaker tilting chair

Furniture

• Shaker pantry box
• Shaker tilting chair

Medicine and healthcare

• Corbett's electrostatic machine
• Syrup of Sarsaparilla^[3]

Tools and appliances

• Circular saw^[1]
• Peg-boards (often called "clothes-pins"^[1][4])
• Deacon Daniel Baird's machinery for making pails, wash boards, and shingles^[5]
• Cut nails^[6]
• Flat broom^[1][7]
• Lumber-drying kiln^[1]
• No-kill mousetrap^[7]
• Metal pen^[1]
• Revolving oven^[2]
• Small paper packets for seeds^[7]
• Shaker broom vise
• Shaker spinning wheel^[8]
• Water-powered cooling fan^[1]
• Wheel-driven washing machine^[1][9]
• Wood-burning stove^[2]

References

1. Magazines, Hearst (1976-07-01). Popular Mechanics. Hearst Magazines.
2. "Silk Circa 1840: Larbi Paper". www.smith.edu. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
3. Reif, Rita (1993). "Creature Comforts Came First". The New York Times. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
4. "The Shakers . About the Shakers | PBS". www.pbs.org. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
5. Daniel Baird (1801-1867) lived at the North Union Shaker village, near Warrensville, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Giles B. Avery, Journal or Diary of A Tour made by the Ministry of New Lebanon to the Shaker Societies in the Western States, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio, V:B-163, MS 3944, August 20, 1862.
6. Gleanings from Old Shaker Journals, Compiled by Clara Endicott Sears. Houghton Mifflin. 1916-01-01.
7. Scott Stafford, "Among Shakers, Inventions Common," Berkshire Eagle, June 3, 2010, https://www.berkshireeagle.com/stories/among-shakers-inventions-common,136108, accessed July 21, 2019.
8. "Great wheels: Knittyspin First Fall 2012". www.knitty.com. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
9. "Laundry/Machine Shop – Hancock Shaker Village". Hancock Shaker Village. Archived from the original on 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2016-05-06.