Bethabara

Bethabara. Historic Bethabara Park . 1753. , About Bethabara , A City of Winston-Salem park and National Historic Landmark, Bethabara is the site of the first Moravian settlement in North Carolina. In 1753, fifteen Moravians set out on a long journey down the Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania to North Carolina and settled a small village, naming it Bethabara or "house of passage.” By the 1760s, Bethabara had developed into a bustling industrial trade center. After the completion of Salem, the population of Bethabara decreased, but remained an active agricultural community through the 20th century. After archaeological excavations in the 1960s, the founding Chair of Historic Bethabara Park's Board of Trustees, Edwin L. Stockton, championed early efforts to preserve and interpret Bethabara as a historic park. Today, the park offers free special events, 183 acres of wildlife preserve, historic gardens, over 10 miles of trails, centuries-old buildings, a reconstructed French and Indian War palisade and colonial village, and the 1788 Gemeinhaus, the oldest standing church with attached residence in the United States.