Bushnell, Richard (1791-1873)

Biography

Richard Bushnell happened upon the Mount Lebanon community while traveling at the age of 21. He not only decided to join the community but persuaded ten of his family members to join, all of whom remained Shakers and many of whom rose to positions of leadership. He remained at the North Family at Mount Lebanon, where he became a trustee in 1821, second elder in 1827, and first elder in 1832. He worked at a number of tasks including making brooms, boxes, and at least one piece of furniture (a signed blanket chest in the Shaker Museum's collection). He was appointed to the Ministry in 1858, but Eldress Polly Reed wrote in a Church Family journal that "He feels very unable to fill the place & it is with great reluctance that he makes any attempt." In 1859, he asked to be released from the Ministry. Nevertheless, he proved to be a capable manager of the North Family's finances, which later gave Elder Frederick Evans the financial means to build the North Family's Great Stone Barn.

See blog post on Brother Richard, and his blanket chest: https://shakerml.org/no-carpenter-or-joiner-elder-bushnells-blanket-chest/