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Moravian Cemetery, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

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Profiles

  • Leonhardt Knauss (1745 - 1823)
    Leonhard Knauss DAR Ancestor #: A066632 Service: PENNSYLVANIA Rank: PRIVATE Birth: 1-8-1745 IN PENNSYLVANIA Death: 5-14-1823 IN BETHLEHEM TWP, NORTHAMPTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA Service Source...
  • Christian Knauss (1778 - 1847)
    Christian Knauss Christian Knauss, 1778-1847, son of Leonhard Knauss, a carpenter; he married Mary Hauser.
  • Mary Knauss (1777 - 1854)
    Maria Knauss (Hauser)
  • Abraham Grosch (1819 - 1875)
    Abraham Grosch Find A Grave Memorial ID # 68510405 Name: Abraham Grosh Enlistment Date: 7 Oct 1862 Enlistment Rank: Private Muster Date: 7 Oct 1862 Muster Place: Pennsylvania Muster Company: B Mus...
  • Lindora Saraphine Grosch (1815 - 1880)
    Lindora Saraphine Grosch (Borhek Find A Grave Memorial ID # 69153090 She was a daughter of Christian Borhek and Maria Luckenbach, she was the wife of Abraham Grosh, who died in 1875. She then move...

This project is for those interred in the Moravian Cemetery, Bethlehem, Northampton County, Pennsylvania.

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From Wikipedia:

The first Moravian God's Acre was begun in 1730 on the western slope of the Hutberg (Hill of Watching) at Herrnhut Saxony in Germany, the Moravian Mother Congregation. As the Moravian Church spread around the world, they laid out their graveyards on hilltops, calling them Hutberg and naming the graveyard God's Acre.The name comes from the belief that the bodies of the dead are "sown as seed" in God's Acre, as in a field, so that they can rise again when Jesus Christ returns to the world. God's Acre is not literally one acre in size; many are larger or smaller.

Moravians believe strongly in equality, even in death; therefore, every stone in a God's Acre is a recumbent stone with the same proportions and made of the same material so that no one person stands out among the stones. The Communion of Saints is continued even on the graveyard as it reflects the continuity of the congregation. In addition, the deceased are buried by choir; to the Moravians, these were the living groups into which the Congregation was originally divided to meet the needs of the members according to their age and station in life. Originally men and women sat in their choir groups in church at worship. The burial by choir in God's Acre also reflects the way the members of the congregation sat as a worshipping community so that visually and symbolically the Congregation continues in the graveyard.

Along with being separated by gender, there are also sections for people of different age and marital status. The typical configuration has sections for infant girls and infant boys, girls and boys, single men and single women, and married men and married women known as the choir system. The deceased are buried in their section in the order they have died. Smaller God's Acres may combine the infant and children sections.

From PA Markers Blog:

God's Acre is the oldest perpetually maintained cemetery in the United States, and is a popular visitation spot, whether you're doing research or just want a quiet place to think. The paths are dotted with benches, and the whole thing is shaded by several different kinds of native trees. It's remarkably peaceful, even by cemetery standards. Historic downtown Bethlehem is just that kind of place.