In the late eighteenth century a small Shaker community travelled to America under the leadership of ‘Mother Ann’ Lee. The American communities they founded were based on ideals of pacifism, celibacy and gender equality. Their ethos and organization had a practical influence on many other communities and on society as a whole. Yet they were not without their detractors. This three volume collection presents writings from a broad cross-section of those who opposed the Shakers and their way of life, which was based on gender equality, celibacy and pacifism. Arriving in America during the Revolutionary War and taking a neutral, pacifist stance, they were widely disapproved of by the majority of Americans. The early documents presented in this set allow a rare glimpse into what life was like in a Shaker community. Later apostate writings also include the legal struggles encountered over the Shaker practice of adopting children into their communities, to live in the celibate family groups.

The collection provides a rare opportunity for scholars to read primary sources on a specific group in American communal history. Documents come from newspapers, books and letters. The whole is set in its historical context by extensive editorial apparatus. It will be of value to those researching American religious and communal history, as well as American social and political history of the post-Colonial period more widely.