National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America (Photo by Diane LaBelle) Casting their eyes toward the rich, arable lands of Pennsylvania, members of the Moravian community purchased a 500 acre tract of land north of Philadelphia in 1741. There, along the Lehigh River, they organized and built the communal society of Bethlehem, which became the base location for all Moravian missionary activity in North America. In 1780, an observer wrote: The first time I visited Bethlehem...[when] issuing out of the woods at the close of the evening in the month of May, [ I ] found myself on a beautiful extensive plain, with the vast eastern branch of the Delaware on the right, richly interspersed with wooded islands, and at the distance of a mile in front the town of Bethlehem, rearing its large stone edifices out of a forest, situated on a majestic, but gradually rising eminence, the background formed the setting sun. So novel and unexpected a transition filled the mind with a thousand singular and sublime ideas and made an impression on me never to be effaced.1 National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Document Contents National Curriculum Standards About This Lesson Getting Started: Inquiry Question Setting the Stage: Historical Context Locating the Site: Map 1. Map 1: Moravian settlements in the mid-Atlantic region Determining the Facts: Readings 1. Reading 1: Early History of the Moravian Community 2. Reading 2: The Choir System 3. Reading 3: Moravian Town Planning Visual Evidence: Images 1. Drawing 1: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, 1766 2. Photo 1: The Gemeinhaus 3. Photo 2: The Single Brethren House 4. Drawing 2a: The Single Brethren House, plan of first floor 5. Drawing 2b: The Single Brethren House, plan of second floor 6. Drawing 2c: The Single Brethren House, plan of third floor 7. Photo 3: The Bethlehem Waterworks 8. Photo 4: The Moravian Chapel Putting It All Together: Activities 1. Activity 1: Developing a Time Line 2. Activity 2: Mapping a Neighborhood References and Endnotes Additional Resources National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Where this lesson fits into the curriculum Time Period: Mid-to-late 18th century Topics: The lesson could be used in units on the American colonial period and the role of religious groups and missionaries in the country's expansion. It also could be used in a World History course in a unit on the Reformation. Relevant United States History Standards for Grades 5-12 This lesson relates to the following National Standards for History from the UCLA National Center for History in the Schools: US History Era 2 • Standard 1A: The student understands how diverse immigrants affected the formation of European colonies. • Standard 2B: The student understands religious diversity in the colonies and how ideas about religious freedom evolved. • Standard 3A: The student understands colonial economic life and labor systems in the Americas. Relevant Curriculum Standards for Social Studies This lesson relates to the following Curriculum Standards for Social Studies from the National Council for the Social Studies: Theme I: Culture • Standard A: The student compares similarities and differences in the ways groups, societies, and cultures meet human needs and concerns. • Standard D: The student explains why individuals and groups respond differently to their physical and social environments and/or changes to them on the basis of shared assumptions, values, and beliefs. • Standard E: The student articulates the implications of cultural diversity, as well as cohesion, within and across groups. Theme II: Time, Continuity and Change National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America • Standard B: The student identifies and uses key concepts such as chronology, causality, change, conflict, and complexity to explain, analyze, and show connections among patterns of historical change and continuity. • Standard C: The student identifies and describes selected historical periods and patterns of change within and across cultures, such as the rise of civilizations, the development of transportation systems, the growth and breakdown of colonial systems, and others. Theme III: People, Places and Environments • Standard G: The student describes how people create places that reflect cultural values and ideals as they build neighborhoods, parks, shopping centers, and the like. Theme IV: Individual Development and Identity • Standard C: The student describes the ways family, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and institutional affiliations contribute to personal identity. Theme V: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions • Standard A: The student demonstrates an understanding of concepts such as role, status, and social class in describing the interactions of individuals and social groups. • Standard B: The student analyzes groups and institutional influences on people, events, and elements of culture. • Standard F: The student describes the role of institutions in furthering both continuity and change. • Standard G: The student applies knowledge of how groups and institutions work to meet individual needs and promote the common good. Theme VII: Production, Distribution, and Consumption • Standard A: The student gives and explains examples of ways that economic systems structure choices about how goods and services are to be produced and distributed. • Standard E: The student describes the role of specialization and exchange in the economic process. • Standard F: The student explains and illustrates how values and beliefs influence different economic decisions Relevant Common Core Standards This lesson relates to the following Common Core English and Language Arts Standards for History and Social Studies for middle school and high school students: Keys Ideas and Details National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.2 Craft and Structure • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.4 Integration of Knowledge and Ideas • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.7 Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.10 National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America About This Lesson This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file, "Central Bethlehem Historic District," and other source material. It was published in 2000. This lesson was written by Diane LaBelle, Director, The Banana Factory. It was edited by Teaching with Historic Places staff. This lesson is one in a series that brings the important stories of historic places into classrooms across the country. Objectives 1. To investigate the early history of the Moravians; 2. To explain why the Moravians founded the community of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; 3. To examine the life ways of the Moravian community in the 18th century in the New World; 4. To compare and contrast the types of structures in 18th-century Bethlehem with those located in their own community. Materials for students The materials listed below can either be used directly on the computer or can be printed out, photocopied, and distributed to students. 1. A map of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and other Moravian settlements in the mid-Atlantic region; 2. Three readings on the history of the Moravian community and the development of Bethlehem; 3. A drawing of Bethlehem in 1766; 4. Four photographs of surviving buildings in Bethlehem; 5. Floor plans of Bethlehem's Single Brethren House. Visiting the site Visitors to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania can tour the town's historic district. For more information, contact the Moravian Museum of Bethlehem, 66 West Church Street, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18018, or visit the historic district’s website and learn about the Moravian museum. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 1-4 p.m. National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Getting Started What might this building be? For what purpose do you think it was used? What makes you think so? National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Photo Analysis Worksheet Step 1: Examine the photograph for 10 seconds. How would you describe the photograph? Step 2: Divide the photograph into quadrants and study each section individually. What details--such as people, objects, and activities--do you notice? Step 3: What other information--such as time period, location, season, reason photo was taken--can you gather from the photo? Step 4: How would you revise your first description of the photo using the information noted in Steps 2 and 3? Step 5: What questions do you have about the photograph? How might you find answers to these questions? National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places U.S. Department of the Interior Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America Setting the Stage The