“HISTORY IS CALLING” CAMPAIGN UPDATE

We are pleased to report that the first phase of the capital campaign, announced at our 2013 annual lecture, is successfully underway! On April 21, 2014, construction crews began to remove the two aging buildings—known as the Bell Cottage and Jordan House—that stood at the corner of Center and Whitfield streets. We were pleased that Habitat Lehigh Valley ReStore in Whitehall Township, which supplies items for Habitat for Humanity projects, salvaged numerous items beforehand. With these nineteenth-century additions removed and the Ephrata Tract returning to its colonial footprint, the magnificent stone Whitefield House is now prominently visible to anyone heading east from Nazareth’s center square.

On July 7, 2014, archaeological investigations into the Ephrata Tract began. Investigators from Hunter Research, Inc., a consulting firm that has completed projects at Ellis Island, Central Park, Historic Morven, and Crown Point began scanning the entire Ephrata Tract. They searched in particular for traces of the First House and for the stockade that surrounded the property during the French & Indian War. Muhlenberg College’s Ben Carter and Lehigh University’s Cameron Wesson followed up on this work by scanning the grounds with a radiometer later in July. - continued on page 6

WE’RE READY TO CELEBRATE NAZARETH’S 275TH BIRTHDAY!

The Moravian Historical Society will play an important part in the celebration of Nazareth’s birthday in 2015.

Commemorating the history of Nazareth will recall some significant dates and events, among them: April 30, 1740, when evangelist George Whitefield bought 5,000 acres, a barony which he named Nazareth, from William Allen; May 5, 1740, the day Brothers Peter Boehler, Anton Seifert, and Henry Antes arrived to inspect the Nazareth tract; and, May 28, 1740, when ten Moravians left Germantown, arriving on May 30th to begin the new settlement. So began the congregation and community of Nazareth. - continued on page 6

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A Letter from the President

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Staff Spotlight:

Kelly Givens

Membership Form

Collection Spotlight:

John Jordan Jr.’s Cane

PAGE 4 and 5

Photo Gallery

PAGE 6

Campaign Progress Update

Nazareth’s 275th Birthday

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Spring and Summer Recap

News From Elsewhere

BACK

Calendar of Events OCTOBER 2014 2-5 4th Bethlehem Conference on Moravian History & Music 5 157th Annual Meeting, Lecture, and Reception at the Sun Inn DECEMBER 2014 13 Christmas in Nazareth APRIL 2015 10 Share the Heritage Dinner & Auction at Historic Hotel Bethlehem MAY 2015 7 Nazareth’s 275th Birthday Kickoff event JUNE 2015 13 37th Annual Arts & Crafts Festival 15-19 Hands-On History Camp

We are extremely proud to offer a variety of events for all ages and interest

levels. Members and non-members are invited to join us for the following

exciting events:

VOLUME 2: NUMBER 2

2014

JOIN US FOR WALKING TOURS

THIS FALL AND WINTER!

Meet our costumed tour guide every 2nd

Saturday in October, November, and

December and enjoy an exciting stroll

through beautiful, historic Nazareth.

This walking tour features an overview of

the early colonial Moravian lifestyle, a

visit to the oldest Moravian buildings in

North America, and stops at important

community buildings to explore

important crafts, industries, and

local personalities!

Tours for members are free!

A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

The Annual Meeting of the Moravian Historical Society on October 5 in the Sun Inn will be one of the highlights of an outstanding year for MHS. Our speaker will be Dr. Katherine Faull of Bucknell University, who is an expert on the relationships between the Moravians and Native Americans in the Susquehanna River region. We have a lot to celebrate this year. We had very successful fund-raising events especially an evening at the Apollo Grill, Share the Heritage Dinner, and the Arts and Crafts Festival. Our Free Summer Sundays continued to be popular, and our first ever children’s history camp was a great success. I cannot praise our staff enough for their hard work. Speaking of staff, we entered into a new phase in our affiliation with the Moravian Archives, which has allowed us to consolidate our bookkeeping while improving our administration.

At our last Annual Meeting I announced a bold plan for the renovation and improvement of the Ephrata Tract, and I am pleased to report that we have already made great progress. Thanks to a wonderful budget surplus, we renovated the back stoop of the Whitefield House. The tract has been opened up considerably and people now have a clear view of the Whitefield House and Gray Cottage as they drive or walk past. We had a team of archaeologists working on the tract this summer who made remarkable discoveries about what lies under the sod. Before winter comes we will have replaced the roof of the Gray Cottage and done extensive repairs to the roof of the Whitefield House. All of this activity is possible because of your support. I look forward to seeing you on October 5!

Rev. Dr. Craig Atwood President

WHAT’S NEW IN THE BOOKSTORE AND GIFT SHOP?

A great place to find unique gifts is our bookstore and gift shop. We have many new items, including colorful Bethlehem and Moravian Stars and beautifully etched glassware. The Stars come in Medium (7-8”) and Large (11”) sizes and are available in blue, purple, and red. The etched glassware is available in either a 6” drinking glass or a 7” water goblet. All are lo-cally made and available ei-ther at the Whitefield House or on our website store.

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Established in 1857, the Moravian Historical Society is the third oldest historical society in Pennsylvania. Our mission is to

present the story of the Moravian Church and its contributions to American history and culture.

BOARD OF MANAGERS: President Rev. Dr. Craig Atwood Vice-President Dr. Linda Shay Gardner Secretary Traci Stocker Treasurer Mary Catherine Tachovsky Managers John Beitel

Chris Carson Barbara Dietterich Sandra Gaspar Steve Krawiec

Bryan Lobach Ed Perusse Mollie Santee Audrey Wanamaker STAFF: Director Megan van Ravenswaay Operations and Events Manager Derrick Malicoat-Clark Administrative Assistant Zackary Biro Docents Sarah Atwood

Zackary Biro Alexander Brown Tara Finegan Stephanie Hann Sarah Hriniak Suzanne Keller

PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE: Rev. Dr. Craig Atwood

Jane Burcaw Barbara Dietterich Dr. Scott Paul Gordon

Dr. Paul Peucker Dr. Robert F. Smith

Traci Stocker

Moravian Historical Society

214 East Center Street Nazareth, PA 18064

www.moravianhistoricalsociety.org 610.759.5070

Open seven days a week: 1—4pm!

HERRNHUT ARCHIVES CELEBRATES 250th

ANNIVERSARY

With an international conference, an exhibition, and a festive worship service during the last weekend of June 2014,

the Unity Archives in Herrnhut celebrated the 250th anniversary of its founding. During the first Synod after the death of Moravian leader Count

Zinzendorf, Moravians decided to bring together all historical documents of the

church into a central archives. The Unity Archives became the repository

of the central administration of the church, the finance board, and the mission board. By preserving their

history, Moravians believed they were documenting God’s work on earth.

They considered their archives repositories of testimonies of faith. The

Unity Archives also contains an extensive collection of records relating to the first century of Moravian work in

America, including diaries, correspondence, maps, and

architectural drawings. Some of this material has been microfilmed and is available at the Moravian Archives in

Bethlehem. Today, the Unity Archives is housed in an 1892 building in Herrnhut

with a modern addition dating from 2002 where records and books are

stored in a secure, climate-controlled environment. Northern Province

archivist Paul Peucker attended the conference and spoke about the

resources the Moravian Archives in Bethlehem has to offer. More on the

Unity Archives: www.unitaetsarchiv.de

If you have not checked out the events section of our website (www.moravianhistoricalsociety.com), you have missed a lot! On June 7th MHS hosted our 36th Annual Arts & Crafts Festival. Nearly 100 vendors gathered on the historic Ephrata Tract touting wares from homemade jams, jellies, breads, cookies, and pies, to hand-crafted furniture and jewelry. The weather was fabulous; music filled the air throughout the day and new food vendors enticed festival goers. Many attendees took ad-vantage of a rare opportunity to tour the historic Gray Cottage, and children had their own area to explore colonial games. Mark June 13, 2015 on your calendars now so you can join in the fun next year!

MHS also hosted our first Hands on History Camp June 23rd- 27th. Children attended this day camp at the Whitefield House and experienced an archeological dig; put together a model of the Gray Cottage; learned the art of watercolor painting; Fraktur and writing with a quill pen; performed chores including assembling a rope bed, making butter and collecting water; and topped off the week by performing a historical play!

In July MHS conducted walking tours of Nazareth, highlighting Moravian history in conjunction with the community-wide celebration of Nazareth Days. If you missed these and would like to take a self-guided tour of Moravian sites in Nazareth, Bethlehem, or other Lehigh Valley areas, pick up our new Moravian Walking Tour and Guidebook of the Lehigh Valley.

Each Sunday from June 29th- August 31st, MHS once again opened the doors to the Whitefield House free of charge during its popular “Free Summer Sundays” Program. Special programs were held each Sunday.

What a busy season! MHS has so much more to follow, however. Check out the back page for our upcoming events, and be sure to like us on Facebook for up-to-date information.

WHAT A BUSY SPRING & SUMMER WE HAD!

CAMPAIGN PROGRESS UPDATE (continued)

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NAZARETH’S 275th BIRTHDAY (continued)

Throughout 2015, we will share Nazareth’s remarkable heritage in programs and special events including the Annual Meeting, which will be held in the borough. The kick-off event for Nazareth’s big birthday will be held on Thursday evening, May 7, 2015, on the Ephrata tract, the grounds of the Whitefield House, hosted by us for our neighbors and friends. Included in the festivities will be tours of the Gray Cottage and the Whitefield House, special refreshments, and entertainment. A new exhibition will highlight the history of Nazareth. This display will showcase the Moravian founding of the community, relating important times, people, and places in Nazareth’s history, and will share the Society’s plans and projects to restore the Ephrata Tract property. Some artifacts to be showcased include blueprints, maps, the deed for the Barony of Nazareth, and a beautiful escutcheon from the Ephrata House door. You’ll need to view the exhibition to see these amazing items and many more.

We encourage you to visit us in Nazareth, attend our exciting events and programs, and consider contributing to the “History is Calling Campaign”, to celebrate this extraordinary year with us!

We are thrilled to announce that we have been awarded a prestigious Keystone Heritage Preservation grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, which, with additional help from Keystone Savings Foundation, will enable us to replace the roof of the 1740 Gray Cottage. We are also creating new exterior interpretive signage for the

Ephrata Tract, with help from Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor and the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce.

These exciting developments constitute the first phase of the new vision for the Ephrata Tract. The second phase will provide the Whitefield House with a handicapped-accessible entrance, a new foyer, restrooms, more security, and upgraded second-floor displays. The final phase envisions a new structure, resembling the First House, that will serve as a visitor center and will feature programming for children. A new band shell for musical performances will help restore the Ephrata Tract to its place at the center of community life in Nazareth. If you wish to participate in the campaign, please visit our website!

COLLECTION SPOTLIGHT: JOHN JORDAN JR’S CANE, 1871

An unassuming oak walking stick displayed in the museum exhibit space has a charming connection to the building’s history. The stick is composed from the original oak timbers of the Whitefield House, replaced during extensive renovations to the building in 1871. When the newly renovated museum space was dedicated that October, the Moravian Historical Society presented this stick to John Jordan Jr., generous

benefactor of the Ephrata Tract and these same renovations. The stick’s handle is made of ivory, with ebony inlaid bands. A gold band joins the handle to the stick and bears the inscription, “Presented to John Jordan, Jr. by the Moravian Historical Society, Oct. 18, 1871.”

Kelly Givens

In summer 2014, our team member, Kelly Givens announced that she will

start a new chapter in her life and will be leaving the Moravian

Historical Society.

Kelly has been a valued employee and a critical part of MHS for five years. She helped us through many transitional periods including

the affiliation with the Moravian Archives. Kelly (and her whole

family) have put in a lot of hard work to help make us successful. We

simply cannot say enough about how impactful her work has been on the

Moravian Historical Society.

The Board, staff, and volunteers are

extremely grateful for everything she has done for us.

Thank you Kelly!

MHS MEMBERSHIP FORM

Join our community of friends and supporters who enjoy a special relationship with us at a membership or club level that's best for you!

Student $15 Whitefield Club $500 Individual $50 Bechler Club $1,000 Additional Members $25 each Spangenberg Club $3,000 Manor Club $100 Zinzendorf Club $5,000 Bicentennial Club $200 Comenius Club $10,000

Name (s): ______________________________________________________ Address: _______________________________________________________ Email: ________________________________ Phone: __________________ My total payment of $ __________ is enclosed. Please charge my Visa or MasterCard# _______________________________ Exp. Date: ________Code: _______Signature: _________________________

Please return this form with payment information to: Moravian Historical Society 214 East Center Street, Nazareth, PA 18064

I am interested in being contacted about (please circle): volunteering planned giving sponsorship opportunities

STAFF

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Share the Heritage Dinner and Auction

36th Annual Arts and Crafts Festival

Hands-On

History Camp