Earliest Buildings & Sites

Bethlehem Moravians brought with them the tradition from Herrnhut of living together as a large family, and they divided themselves into Choirs - that is, groups separated by age, sex, and marital status (as opposed to wealth and social standing). As a result, some would say that nuclear families did not exist in Bethlehem during this time. From their point of view as puritans, they considered their entire community to be one big family, which further illustrated in death by how bodies were arranged in the God’s Acre cemetery, not by familial relation, but rather grouped again in simple graves by their sex, marital status, and chronological date of death.

Communal Living was something that was very fundamental to their identity and faith. For them this was the best arrangement as it allowed all to labor together effectively for the glory of God and the good of the community. Count Zinzendorf was a strong proponent of the choir system because he believed that everyone developed (physically/mentally/spiritually) along a pattern, and so people of similar ages/sexes/marital statuses had similar developmental needs. Therefore, by placing them in small groups, the personal and spiritual growth of each individual could be most efficiently overseen and tended to by a choir leader. Furthermore, even children were placed in their own choirs/boarding schools at a very early age under the care of the single sisters thus freeing their parents to work.

This system continued to be followed until in 1762 when the church elders began allowing married couples to own private homes in Bethlehem. However, single women, single men, and widows continued to reside in their respective choir houses. The Brethren’s House was closed in 1814, but the Single Sisters’ House and the Widows’ House are both still occupied by people today (some Moravian), nearly 300 years later!

UNESCO World Heritage Properties

Properties that Continue the Story

1752 Apothecary
1758/1765 Nain-Schober House
1758 Sun Inn
1782/1834 Grist Miller’s House
1810 Goundie House
Burnside Plantation
1869 Luckenbach Mill (constructed on the remains of the 1755 mill)
Reconstructed Springhouse (near original 1760 springhouse)
Reconstructed Blacksmith Shop (on foundation of the 1750/1761 Smithy)