Free Republic

Shakers are on the endangered list. There are now only two living members left of the Shaker Church in Maine after one died Monday. Sister Frances Carr passed away from cancer at 89. The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing — a mouthful, to be sure — was a Quaker sect that broke from the Society of Friends in the 18th century. At their height, the group was said to have about 5,000 members across the country. The Shakers, as they were called because of their trembling during worship, focus on hard work and simplicity, and lead a...

One of the last members of a nearly extinct religious society at Sabbathday Lake has died, a loss for a group that’s dwindled because members are celibateSister Frances Carr, one of the last remaining members of the nearly extinct religious society called the Shakers, has died. She was 89. Carr died Monday surrounded by family and friends in the dwelling house at the Shaker community at Sabbathday Lake in New Gloucester, Maine after a brief battle with cancer, said Brother Arnold Hadd, one of the group’s two remaining members. “She had a death with dignity and love,” Hadd said Tuesday....

Time magazine has named Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger one of the top 100 movers and shakers in the world, ... --snip-- .. profile of Schwarzenegger was penned by his wife's cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. .. --snip-- "Schwarzenegger's commitment to green growth often pits him against his own political party. He has fought off the Bush Administration's efforts to weaken California's global-warming initiatives and drill for oil along the coast and in the state's national forests. A true fiscal conservative with a deep commitment to California's future, ...."

Archaeologists explore site of famous religious group's old seed house in Colonie COLONIE -- A team of archaeologists methodically sifted through clumps of dirt Sunday in an attempt to quickly document newly discovered artifacts on the old Shaker settlement just off Route 155. The find could further reveal the industriousness of the 18th-century religious sect at their first known American settlement, but it also lies directly in the path of a new sewer line serving Albany International Airport. A work crew digging a trench for the line on the county-owned land struck the foundation wall Friday of what experts say...