Sister June Carpenter, one of the last Shakers, dies at 88 in Maine

Sister June Carpenter, one of the last members of the Shaker religious movement, died at age 88 in Maine, according to the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village announcement reported by the Boston Herald.

Carpenter had been experiencing health problems and limited mobility prior to her death. She was part of the Sabbathday Lake community in New Gloucester, Maine, which is the only remaining active Shaker community.

The Shakers are a celibate Christian group that originated as an offshoot of the Quakers in the late 1700s. Founded by Mother Ann Lee, the movement once had thousands of members living in communities across the United States.

Carpenter was a trained librarian who helped organize and catalog the village’s extensive historical collections, making Shaker history more accessible to researchers. She first volunteered at Sabbathday Lake in 1988 and was credited with preserving the Shakers’ legacy for future generations.

Today, the Sabbathday Lake community includes a few longtime members and novices, maintaining the Shaker tradition despite the decline in numbers since the 19th century. The Shakers’ cultural influence remains visible through their distinctive furniture and architecture.