First Moravian Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Moravian Church
Moravians
Burial records
Cemeteries
Burial plan of the God's Acre (cemetery) at Philadelphia First Moravian Church, bounded by Franklin and Vine Streets, from 1757 to 1805. Column headings translate as: Mägdlein and Mädgen (girls); Vereh[e]l[ichte] Schw[este]rn (married sisters, i.e. married women); Ledige Schw[este]rn (single sisters, i.e. single women); Vereh[e]l[ichte] Br[üde]r (married brothers, i.e. married men); Ledige [Brüder] (single [brothers], i.e. single men); and finally Knäbgen and Knäblein (boys). These burials are also documented on pages 211 to 263 of "Church register vol. 1, 1743-1822."
Church membership
Titled on the front-inside cover, "Names & Residence of the Congregation of the United Brethrens Church in Philadelphia, Dec. 14, '36." Names are not listed in alphabetical order, but appear to be listed in geographical groupings. Persons living outside the city are listed on page 11. Known descendants of Moravians who were "not members at present" are listed on page 12. "Friends and contributors" are listed on pages 13 to 14. Although the directory is dated 1836, updates are noted up to 1839.
Registers of births, etc.
Baptismal records
Marriage records
Church records and registers
This register dates from 1743 to 1822 and includes an extensive alphabetical index in the front of the book. Births and baptisms are then listed from page 1 to page 172, deaths and burials are listed from page 201 to page 302, and marriages are listed from page 305 to page 328. Note: Text on pages i-iv is in German.
This register begins with an alphabetical index. Births and baptisms are listed from page 1 to page 93, marriages are listed on page 131 to 171, and deaths and burials are listed from page 213 to page 262.
Lord's Supper
This register begins with an alphabetical index. Communicants are listed from pages 52 to 117, and again on page 324. Births and baptisms are listed on pages 121 to 153; receptions of new members are listed on pages 181 to 193 (previous congregations are noted); deaths, funerals and burials are recorded on pages 241 to 279; and marriages are recorded on pages 301 to 323. Note: blank pages were not scanned.
Love feasts
Sermons
Hymns
Church management
Indians of North America
A journal of happenings in the "English congregation" from its establishment on January 1, 1743, running up to June 15, 1745. Topics covered include births and baptisms, sermons preached and hymns sung, "love feasts," meetings and conferences, members' travel (including extensive travel between Philadelphia and Bethlehem), missionary work with Native Americans, and correspondence with Moravians in other parts of Pennsylvania and abroad, as far as London and Germany.
Church schools
"The Continuation of ye Philadelphia Journal," documenting happenings in the First Moravian Church of Philadelphia from June 16, 1745 to December 31, 1746. Topics covered include: sermons preached; members' travel and correspondence; burials; love feasts, meetings and conferences; relations with local Native Americans; visits with members, especially those who were ailing; and the committee appointed to look into building a church school.
Quakers
Although the cover suggests this diary covers a date span of 1747 to 1751, entries actually run from January 1, 1747 to December 31, 1748. Topics covered include: sermons preached; visits to church members, especially those who were ailing; baptisms and burials; meetings, conferences and love feasts; members' travels and correspondence; relations with local Quakers; and admission of new members. Records of sermons and meetings often include notes about the language spoken - English, German, or both.
African Americans
Diary of happenings in the First Moravian Church of Philadelphia from September 6, 1749 to December 31, 1751. Topics covered include: church meetings, including "Negro Meetings," "German Meetings," and "English Meetings;" members traveling to and away from Philadelphia, particularly to and from Bethlehem; sermons preached in English and German; births, baptisms, deaths, burials, and new members received into the congregation; love feasts; and regular visits to members, including those in ill health.
Deceased Moravians, friends, and children, 1744-1768
Record of Philadelphia Moravians, their children and friends who died during the years 1744 to 1768. Many of the column headings in the catalog are in German, for which translations are provided: "No." (number), "Nahmen der Verschiedenen" (names of the deceased), "Nahmen der Eltern, der Eheleute oder Meisters" (name of parents, spouse, or master), "wie alt" (how old), "wenn verschieden" (when deceased), "wenn begraben" (when buried), "wo begraben" (where buried), and "durch wen begraben" (buried by whom). Several notes about individuals buried at Potter's Field in Philadelphia are included on the final page. This manuscript was likely sent or intended to be sent to church leadership in Bethlehem, PA.
Confirmation
Church meetings
Missionaries
American Civil War (United States : 1861-1865)
Includes a summary of events, compiled by pastor Edmund de Schweinitz for the years 1842 to 1854, in the time after pastor David Bigler's calling to First Moravian Church, New York, NY. According to the account provided here by Schweinitz, no congregational diary was kept during this time. From 1855-1866, a complete diary was again kept by ministers of the congregation. Topics covered include but are not limited to: descriptions of services & sermons; confirmations, marriages, receptions of new members, and deaths in the congregation; prayer meetings, congregational meetings, and love feasts; the arrival of new ministers; the practice of "pulpit exchange" with other denominations; fundraising for causes such as the Sunday School and missionary work; and the American Civil War. Inserted printed materials include programs for church events such as the cornerstone ceremonies of 1855 and 1866, and news clippings on the Emancipation Proclamation.
Ground plan of the Moravian stores on Vine Street, circa 1808
Church buildings
Church finance
Pen on paper drawing of the layout of the Moravian stores on Vine Street, from around 1808.
Lithographs of First Moravian Church of Philadelphia, 1857
Four hand-colored lithographs created by Herline & Hensel of Philadelphia in 1857. The first lithograph features a view of the front and side of the original 1742 Moravian Church, which was located at the southeast corner of Bread Street (then Moravian Alley) and Race Street. The second lithograph features a view of the front and side of the Moravian Church (and parsonage) as it stood, on that same location, from 1746 to 1820. The third lithograph features a view of the front of the 1820 Moravian Church and surrounding buildings on Race Street. Finally, the fourth lithograph features a view of the side and front of the new Moravian Church of 1856, located at the southwest corner of Wood and Franklin Streets.
Titled in English, "A List of the Children under the Care of the Brethren in Philadelphia." The date of August 13, 1760 is noted in A. G. Spangenberg's handwriting at the top of page 1. The list was handwritten by Jacob Rogers, then pastor of the Philadelphia congregation, and it includes the children's names and dates of birth.
Immigrants
Membership catalog of the First Moravian Church of Philadelphia, with entries dating from 1742 to 1783; likely handwritten by Jacob Friis or Johann Daniel Sydrich, who were both pastors of the Philadelphia congregation. Most of the column headings are in German, for which translations have been provided: "No." (number), "Namen" (names), "geboren" (born/date of birth), "woher" (where born), "Religion" (faith traditions), "in die Ehe getreten" (entered into marriage), "ins Land kommen" (arrival in the country), "Aufgenommen" (received as a member), "zur Communion" (admitted to communion), "Ihre Kinder" (their children), "geboren" (born/dates of birth of children), and "getauft, von wem" (date child baptized, by whom). Contains an incomplete index that was never used.
Titled in English, "A Catalogue of the Congregation members, Communicants, & not-communicants, & Society People, belonging to the little Flock of United Brethren in Phiadelphia." Names are listed for each category, along with short testimonies about the character or general mood of individuals, for example, "A good heart," or "Goes on as usual," or "Happier than ever." The list is likely not complete, as A. G. Spangenberg noted on page 4, "wo sind aber die übrigen?" (but where are the rest of them?).
Titled in German, "Verzeichniß derer zum Brüder-Gemeinlein in Philadelphia Befindenden, bey Bruder David Nitschmanns Visitation vom 24 30. Januar. 1766," which translates to "List of those in the Brethren congregation in Philadelphia, at Brother David Nitschmann's visitation from January 24-30, 1766." This catalog includes detailed information about individuals belonging to the First Moravian Church of Philadelphia, written in German. Translations of column headings are as follows: Beginning with page 2, the column headings are "Namen" (names), "geboren" (born/date of birth), "Wo?" (where born), "Religion" (faith traditions), "in die Ehe getreten" (entered into marriage), "ins Land gekommen" (arrived in the country), "aufgenommen" (received as a member), and "zur Heiligen Communion" (admitted to Holy Communion). Beginning with p. 21, the column headings are "Namen" (names), "geboren" (born/date of birth), "wo" (where born), and "Religion" (faith traditions).
Titled in English, "Catalogue of Members belonging to the Congregation in Philadelphia : Nov. 13, 1836." Members are listed in groups, with communicants listed first, followed by society members, and both groups further subdivided by sex and marital status. Next children are listed, also divided by sex. Entries include individual's names and dates of birth. Many of the pages of this catalog were not used; a few additional entries are scattered through later pages.
Confirmation records
Titled in English on front cover, "Church Book." Members are listed in groups, with communicants listed first, followed by society members, and both groups further subdivided by sex and marital status. Next children are listed, also divided by sex. Entries include individual's names and dates of birth; some entries also include dates of baptism and confirmation. The manuscript begins with an index that covers the first and largest grouping of entries. Several updated catalogs are recorded throughout the manuscript, and friends of the congregation who were not members are listed on pages 120-121.
Minutes of the English Conference, 1743-1747
Corporate minutes
Elders (Church officers)
Church discipline
Conflict management
Baptism
This committee included the elders of the English-speaking Moravians in Philadelphia. Minutes run from September 27, 1743 to July 3, 1747, and cover a variety of topics. Disputes between the German and English members of the Philadelphia congregation were common in the early period, so management of those conflicts - as well as conflicts among the English speaking congregants, including marital disputes - is a recurrent subject. Other topics include, but are not limited to: collections to pay for church supplies, ground rent, and preachers' salaries; relations with the Quakers; visitation of the sick and care of vulnerable members; reception of new members; baptisms and love feasts; upkeep of the church building and grounds; members' travel; the desire for a school church; and a conference to bring together English and German-speaking laborers in the congregation.
"Record of those who were received in the Congregation / according to the resolver of the Provincial Conference, 1802. / Since Br & Sr [Brother and Sister] J. Zaeslein's Arrival, 1803." Entries are listed by date and include the individual's name, any relation to existing members, and previous congregational affiliation.
A directory of members' names, listed street by street. Spouses and children are also noted, as well as descriptions such as "yellow frame house." Updates and annotations are penciled in throughout the manuscript.
One page, front and back, listing the names and addresses of members of the Sunday School of the First Moravian Church of Philadelphia in 1856.