PITTSFIELD, Mass. — For two centuries, Hancock Shaker Village has been home to the only circular barn ever built by the Shakers, and on Sunday, the museum will be celebrating the landmark's bicentennial. 

 

The museum is known for its work preserving and educating the public on the history of the Shakers through interactive exhibits, such as the beloved Baby Animals festival in April and May.

 

On Sunday from 10 to 5, museum admission is free with a range of activities including tours of the iconic Round Stone Barn, lectures on the shakers and the museum's other brick dwellings, a wind turbine demonstration, shaker music and dancing demonstrations, live performances, and so much more. More information on the event here. 

 

According to the museum's website, the Round Stone Barn, built in 1826, is widely recognized as an architectural icon and agricultural wonder. 

 

The Shakers operated a working dairy farm at Hancock until the 1950s and the barn was originally a stable for its 52 milk cows, the site said. 

 

It has ground-level access on all three levels so, wagons could enter on the upper level to deposit hay into the central haymow on the main floor below, then the empty wagons would be driven around the circular barn floor and exit the same door it came in, eliminating the potentially dangerous activity of backing wagons out of a barn, the website said. 

 

The cows stabled on the main floor faced inward toward the haymow for ease of feeding and manure was shoveled through trapdoors to the cellar, where it was stored until needed as fertilizer in the gardens, it said. 

 

Among the most anticipated events during the 200th birthday celebration is its inclusion in cellist Yo-Yo Ma's curated "We the People" series.

 

"We are also thrilled to collaborate with Yo-Yo Ma, Sound Postings, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Mill Town Foundation to create a series of celebratory performances and activations calling attention to our shared past, present, and future," Carrie Holland, Hancock Shaker Village director and CEO, said in a press release. 

 

Ma worked with the Boston Symphony Orchestra to curate a week of concerts, conversations, and events from Aug. 1 through 9, as part of recognizing America's 250th anniversary. 

 

The series of events will take place at several venues through the county, including Bousquet Mountain, The Triplex Cinema, Studio E, Linde Center for Music and Learning, and, of course, Tanglewood. Line-up here. 

 

According to the Boston Symphony Orchestra's website, the events offer a window into Ma's perspective on the "American experiment," celebrating community and common purpose while encouraging people to consider their relationship with one another and the land they share, and to imagine a hopeful future.

 

"'We The People' brings artists and thinkers together with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for a week that asks musicians, audiences, and local communities to reflect on the core truths we share and imagine what we can do to strengthen them, individually or together," the website states.