8 Things You Didn’t Know About Bethlehem
- Gottesacker
- German for God’s Acre, this cemetery serves as the final resting place for Bethlehem’s earliest founders. What’s different about this cemetery is that Native Americans and Women are buried alongside the Moravians that were buried there. Their tombstones all have the same dimensions, regardless of race, sex, age, etc. The Moravians had a strong belief that all men, and women were created equal in the eyes of God.
- Revolutionary War Mass Grave
- Bethlehem was home to a very large American hospital. The local Moravians didn’t want a battle to occur in the town, so volunteered Bethlehem as a hospital for wounded soldiers. The Americans didn’t want the British to see how many Americans were dying from disease or wounds, so the Moravians buried the dead in the night away from the hospital. In the 1920’s the grave was discovered and a crypt was erected in honor of their service.
- Hotel Bethlehem Guests
- A staple of Bethlehem since 1922, Hotel Bethlehem has had its fair share of famous guests. A few famous guests that stayed there are, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Former Presidents Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Gerald Ford, and Bill Clinton. In addition to heads of state, Henry Ford, Amelia Earhart, Shirley Temple, Muhammad Ali, and Harry Connick Jr. have all stayed a night or two in the hotel.
- Billy Joel’s Allentown
- Billy Joel’s hit song Allentown was actually based on Bethlehem. The reason he named it Allentown rather than Bethlehem was because Bethlehem might have a religious connotation and Allentown was easier to rhyme with.
- The Sun Inn
- A tavern built by local Moravians, the Sun Inn was renowned for its tasty food and atmosphere, but during the American Revolution it acted as a meeting place and hotel. Many founding fathers such as George Washington, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Samuel Adams and John Hancock stayed at the Inn during the war.
- Bethlehem Steel in WWII
- Bethlehem Steel had factories all over the Eastern United States. Bethlehem Steel’s steel built America’s skyscrapers, bridges, and war arsenal. When WWII broke out in 1939, Bethlehem Steel began making ship guns, artillery, tanks, and anything else the War Production Board needed them to produce. Bethlehem’s steel arguably won WWII.
- The Bethlehem Star
- The shining star on the hill has been a Bethlehem staple since 1937 when a wooden version was erected for $460. In WWII it was unplugged because the light could act as a guide for Axis bombers to bomb the Steel Plant. City officials also said, "During the global strife it didn't seem right for the lights to be all lit up when our boys were out in the darkness fighting for us.” After WWII the Star has undergone many structural upgrades.
- Room 932
- Many people who stay at Hotel Bethlehem request to stay in the haunted Room 932. Visitors see abortions in the mirrors and the chatter of guests who stayed long past their checkout date. Maybe it’s Francis Thomas who was a tour guide of Bethlehem, or one of the other countless ghosts who reside in Bethlehem.
