It stands on a fertile rise overlooking the Kentucky River. As followers of a charismatic woman named Ann Lee, whom they believed to be the Second Coming of Christ in female form, Shakers were committed to celibacy, pacifism, equality, shared labor and common property. At its zenith around 1830, when the population reached 500, Pleasant Hill was the third largest of 18 Shaker communities in the United States. Although no Shakers have lived at Pleasant Hill since the early 1920s, today visitors can experience aspects of Shaker life, work, music and worship through interpretive exhibits and events. There are 33 restored buildings on 2,800 acres.
Shaker Village is open year-round, with riverboat excursions offered spring through fall.
Meeting facilities available. Only two pioneer log meetinghouses survive in the Bluegrass, Cane Ridge in Bourbon County, and Old Mud Meeting House near Harrodsburg in Mercer County. The first Dutch Reformed Church west of the Alleghenies, Old Mud was built in 1800. Faith and Education Visit college campuses in the Bluegrass, and you'll discover not only historic buildings and scenic campuses, but strong religious traditions. Georgetown College, north of Lexington in Georgetown, was the first Baptist college west of the Alleghenies, and the sixth Baptist college organized in the United States.