General and Cosmetic Dentists Near Bethania, NC

The oldest municipality in Forsyth County, North Carolina, Bethania is a unique farming village located in northwest North Carolina. The historic community is a bit of an anomaly, with a population estimated in 2010 to be a mere 328 residents. The old historic community remained unincorporated until 1995 when the original town charter from 1838 was reactivated.

History

During the colonial period there was a great migration of immigrants from the northeast southward along the Great Wagon Road. Bethania was the first planned settlement of Moravian migrants in North Carolina. Today, Bethania is the only known existing Germanic-type linear agricultural village in the South. Founded on June 12th, 1759 by the Moravian Brethren of the Moravian Church of Wachovia, the village was founded with the intention of being a congregational, agricultural, and trading community. The Moravian Church is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in the world. From its founding, the community of Bethania functioned under the leadership and structure of the church and its congregation. The members of the community “society” were permitted to live in the village after July 1759. Bethania, is named after Bethany, the name of the village outside of Jerusalem. According to the New Testament Bethany was the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. For a period of time during the Revolutionary War, local residents called the community “HauserTown” instead of Bethania, referring to the large number of residents with the last name Hauser. One of the Hauser family members, Mary Hauser, was one of the first residents buried within the town’s God’s Acre Cemetery.

Today

Today the community of Bethania is the only remaining independent, continuously active Moravian village in the United States. Forsyth County is known for its number of National Historic Landmarks, and the 500-acre Bethania National Historic Landmark district is the largest district in the county. Today, the entire village, with its eighteenth-century German-type linear design remains well-preserved and intact. In fact, many of the original roadways dating back to 1759, have remained intact and are still in continuous use.

The community residents take a great deal of pride in preserving their community history and sharing it with others. To help with this, a town visitor center and museum was opened in Historic Bethania in March of 2007. The center and museum focus on the promotion of education and cultural preservation of the village’s long and storied history. A popular part of the museum, the Wolff-Moser House, is a fully restored Moravian farmstead home. The Wolff-Moser House was originally built around 1792.

The farmhouse is one of the oldest surviving rural Moravian homes in the country. For those interested in touring and exploring the National Historical Landmark District outside of the museum, the visitor center provides visitors tour maps as well as additional guidance. In the nearby area outside of the historic district village, there are several other tourist destinations listed on the National Register of Historic Places that history buffs should make sure to include in their tour of the Moravian community, including: the Dr. Beverly Jones House, the John Henry Kapp Farm, and the Samuel B. Stauber Farm.