It is based on the hand-drawn map "A Delineation or View of the Village called the Church Family" by David A. Buckingham and shows the inventory of the Church Family’s structures and lands. The map portrays landscape features such as a botanical garden, pastures, pathways, and over fifty buildings, from shops and dwelling houses to minor structures.

Brother Austin’s drawing of Watervliet locates the buildings, annotates the purpose of several gardens, and positions the apple trees in the orchard, providing a complete understanding on how the Shaker residents occupied the site in the 1830s. The digital reconstruction of the structures are based on his representations, as described in Brother Buckingham’s letter to fellow Shaker Brother Isaac, on historical documents, and records from the Albany County Survey.