if

you will do me the Favour to write a Letter to me, and send it to Mr Kemble in Philadelphia who will send to me, by a Brig that will be soon coming here from there-I am to beg the favor of you to get me Models, in Wood, made of your Saw Mill, and your oil Mill, your Mill for shelling oats and grinding oatmeal, and also of your Mill for cutting Bark for the Tanner, all which are at Bethlehem. If you have an ingenius Workman who will make these Models for me, I will pay Him whatever shall be thought reasonable-The Models ought to be upon a scale of about half an inch to a Foot of the original. Will you be so obliging as to let me know if you can get any one to execute this for me, and at what cost, and how soon? I earnestly hope I shall be able to get a model of the curious Grist Mill at The Hope; Enclosed is a Letter to your Brother Culver's there,

Judith Kemble] Archibald McCall, the India merchant, built a house, still standing at the corner of Second and Union Streets. Its garden extended a considerable distance down the latter street, and was well stocked with various animals brought by his supercargoes from foreign parts, so that it was in a manner our first zoological garden."

13 At that period the manufacturing and other industries of Bethlehem were far in advance of those existing in any other place in the United States outside of the few largest cities on the Atlantic seaboard. Very interesting references to them are to be found in the entertaining little volume entitled "An Excursion into Bethlehem and Nazareth, in Pennsylvania, in the year 1799; with a succinct History of the Society of United Brethren, commonly called Moravians. By John C. Ogden, Presbyter in the Protestant Episcopal Church, in the United States."

He mentions the grist mill, describing some of its ingenious appliances, the fulling mill, with its water wheel and reservoir, the bark mill, stating that

the bark is delivered in such a state from the works that it might be easily packed in casks for transportation, or an essence be extracted by chemical process," the tannery, the saw mill, the oil mill, the grain-hulling and snuff mill, the brewery, the pottery, the textile manufactories, the water-works, the laundry, the dairy with its churning machine, the apiary, the pharmacy and the botanical garden.

14 Hope, in Oxford Township, Sussex County, (now Warren County,) N. J., founded as a regular church settlement, on the model of others then existing, in 1774, on land purchased of John Samuel Green, where a less completely organized station, called Greenland, had existed since 1769. (See Vol. I, Transac. Hist. Soc., p. 51.)

The mill was built on Paulin's Creek, in 1770, planned and supervised by Christian Christiansen, of Bethlehem, the ingenious machinist and millwright who erected the waterworks at Bethlehem, the first in the country.

asking his assistance to procure me such Model-I expect to own several Streams which run into the Kennebeck, and having the best models, I can put up the best Mills for as little expense

That there was anything peculiar in the construction of the mill, as the letter seems to imply, records do not inform us. Mr. Gardiner evidently considered it superior to any he had ever seen elsewhere. The Hope mill was an important establishment during the Revolution. It is recorded that in January, 1778, a hundred weight of its flour cost $20. In June of that year its entire stock of flour and wheat was seized for Continental stores. The first miller was John Heckedorn, who plied his avocation only half a year, and was succeeded by Daniel Hauser, the miller of the revolutionary years. He was the youngest son of Martin and Margaretha Hauser, whose numerous descendants so largely peopled Bethania, N. C., that this place came to be dubbed Hausertown (pronounced in North Carolina Hoosertown) and is so known to this day.

Daniel was born in Conewago County, Pa., and was married June 8, 1772, to Elizabeth, daughter of Matthew and Barbara Meyer. One of the later millers was Richard Whitesell, grandfather of the late John Whitesell, manager of the old Bethlehem and Philadelphia stage line, and a son of Andrew Whitesell and his wife Margaret, m. n. Green, a sister of John Samuel Green.

15 Ephraim Culver, who at the date of this letter was inn-keeper at Hope, and also baker for the village; for did not the committee which presided over the destinies of the community give him explicit orders to sell fifteen "Lebkuchen" for one shilling to Frederick Leinbach in the store? He was the son of Ephraim Culver, Sr., erst of Connecticut, who, with his family, stood in friendly relations to the Moravians laboring at Sichem; removed to Smithfield, Township, Monroe County, Pa., in 1753, and built himself a house and a mill on McMichael's Creek, near the site of Stroudsburg; with his family fled from his home on account of the Indian outbreak, December 11, 1755, and took refuge in Nazareth. He was at various times landlord of "The Rose," near Nazareth, and of "The Crown Inn," on the south side of the Lehigh River, at Bethlehem, and died at Bethlehem, 1775. The younger Ephraim Culver, who is referred to in this letter, was born in Connecticut circa 1741, learned the trade of carpentering, and after the hegira from "over the mountains" served an apprenticeship under Hartman Verdries, the miller at Gnadenthal. In 1769, before he located at Hope, he carried on a bakery in the large stone house in Bethlehem, in which in more recent times the late John F. Wolle kept the congregation-store. He was married to Magdalena Lanius, of York, Pa., in 1770. She died at Hope, leaving

four children:

Ephraim, born at Bethlehem, 1773.

Elizabeth,

William,

Jacob,

Hope,

1776.

1778.

1783.

His death and burial occurred at Shoeneck in 1804.

as I could put ordinary Mills-My best Love and good wishes attend you and all the Brethren at Bethlehem and elsewhere, and I remain your much obliged and faithfull Friend

J. GARDINER.

P. S Your Brother Otto16 as I think his Name is-the Physician or Doctor at Bethlehem cures the Bite of the Rattle-snake-He shewed me some Roberts' Plantain which he used in the CureNow I should be exceedingly obliged to Him if he would give the Receipt or proper mode to cure a Person bit by a Rattlesnake as it may save the Lives of many wretches and poor

16 The fact that two Ottos, brothers, both physicians and surgeons, figure in the early history of Bethlehem, Nazareth and other settlements, and that both are continually referred to in the records as merely Dr. Otto, tends to confusion. They were sons of John Bernhardt Otto, physician and surgeon at Meiningen, County of Henningen, Principality of Saxe-Meiningen, and his wife Christina, m. n. Carl.

The elder brother, Dr. John Frederick Otto, born at Meiningen, August 9, 1712, studied at Jena and Halle and obtained the degree of M. D. at the latter place. In 1740 he came into contact with Moravian evangelists in his native place and under their influence was spiritually awakened. After the sudden death of his father he visited the Brethren's settlement of Herrnhaag, in 1742, and the next year proceeded via Herrnhut to Gnadeck, an estate of the Count of Promnitz, in the castle of which the "Pilger-Gemeine" (Count Zinzendorf's itinerant company) was sojourning at the time.

There, in 1743. he was received into the Church, and on August 17 of that year was married to Anna Maria Weber, from Frankfort on the Main. On September 7, 1743, he started with his wife to Holland, where he attached himself to the company of one hundred and thirty-three persons, called "the second sea congregation," which set sail on the ship Little Strength, Capt. Garrison, from Cowes, September 27, landed at New York, November 26, and reached Bethlehem, December 6. He officiated as physician of the company, and is mentioned among the officers of the sea congregation. He became the first established physician and surgeon at Bethlehem, where his wife died April 4, 1749. His second wife, to whom he was married June 25, 1750, was a daughter of John Stephen Benezet, of Philadelphia, Judith, who came to Bethlehem in 1741, and was married July 10, 1742, to the missionary David Bruce, who died 1749. Dr. Otto was ordained a Deacon of the Church August 18, 1754. After seventeen years of faithful service at Bethlehem, Nazareth and the neighborhood, he was transferred to Lititz in October, 1750. (See Transac. Hist. Soc. II, 356.) In 1763 he returned to Nazareth as resident physician, where he remained until his death, December 31, 1779. On account of the very deep snow and the extreme cold his remains could not be interred until January 4. His widow removed to Bethlehem January 22, 1780, and made her home in the Widows' House,

Children who are very subject to be bit at Milton and about the blue Hills, within a few Miles of this Town-The children are often stung when they are gathering Huckle-berries-I would assist them & administer the medicine to them without Fees or Reward if I rightly knew what it was.

ETTWEIN TO JOHN GARDINER.

John Gardiner Esq' at Boston.

Honord & Dr Sir,

Jan 15th 1784.

I received your Favour of the 7th Oct' and was very glad to see by it that you & your Son not only arrived Safe at Boston but that you also had a good Prospect to obtain the Land on Kennebek River where you kindly wish to see a Brns Settlement made. I am sure it would be a Benefit to that Country and a Blessing to such as have a Love for Religion, but where she died January 27, 1786. He had two children by his first wife, a daughter, Anna Dorothea, who died in early childhood, and a son, Joseph, who was born at Bethlehem, April 4, 1745, married Anna Mary Horsefield, a daughter of Timothy Horsefield, at Bethlehem, January 28, 1774. He also became a physician and surgeon, and succeeded to his father's practice. Dr. John Frederick Otto, and not Dr. John Matthew Otto, as erroneously stated in a foot-note (Trans. Hist. Soc. II, 26), was the great-grandfather of the late Prof. Henry I. Schmidt, of Columbia College, and of Edward Otto Smith, merchant, of Philadelphia.

The younger brother, Dr. John Matthew Otto, was born at Meiningen, November 9, 1714, studied first with his father and then at Augsburg, entered into his father's practice about 1740, at the time of the great awakening accompanied his brother, his brother-in-law, Koch, the surgeon Arnold, and others, in all about twenty persons, to Herrnhaag, but returned home. In 1746 he again followed them and united with the Church. In 1750 he came via Holland and England, with a company of about sixty persons, to America, reached Bethlehem, July 8 of that year, and at once entered the service of the Church as physician and surgeon at Bethlehem, he and his brother, John Frederick, being for a while located here together. He was married at Bethlehem, September 7, 1753, to Joanna Sophia Magdalena Dressler, daughter of the foreman of a brass foundry at Grünen, Schwartzburg, where she was born, January 1, 1726. She came to America with Bishop John Nitschmann's company of one hundred and twenty-five persons on the Irene, in May, 1749. She died at Bethlehem, February 25, 1776. Dr. Otto married again, October 28, 1778, his second wife being Maria Magdalena Schmidt, who was born in the Palatinate, November 22, 1735, reached America a lone orphan (both parents, with their other three children, having died on the voyage), was taken in charge by the Boeckels of

I don't know how it is, it seems for the present as if the BTM were quite disabled to make new Settlements, we can hardly find proper Subjects for those already begun.

I could not get any quantity of shelled Barley, the Mills could do very little on account of the drought we had & whether it would suit you to send any in the Spring I don't know. I sent your Letter to Mr Coulver at Hope. My desire to hear him and Mr Leinbach there about the Millwork is the Cause that I could not write to you as soon as I wish'd to do.

I have enquired of our Millwrights about the Modells of the Mills mentioned in your Letter, there was none that would undertake it. Mr Leinbach was willing to make one of the Mill in Hope, but would not fix a Time to compleat it and said for less than 3 or 4 half Joes he could not do it. A Draught for a MillHeidelberg, former friends of her parents; came thus into contact with the Brethren, and in 1748 moved into the Sisters' House at Bethlehem, as one, of its first inmates. She died April 18, 1784, leaving Dr. Otto a second time a widower. On August 7, 1786, he was stricken with paralysis and died at Bethlehem, August 9. The record states that "he served the congregation and surrounding neighborhood for thirty-six years with great faithfulness, by the Lord's help performed many difficult cures, and was held in high regard. He was a sincere lover of the Lord Jesus and of His Church, yea he was a philanthropist." This is the Dr. Otto referred to in Gardiner's letter. The following were his children, all by his first wife:

Christian Frederick, born at Bethlehem, December 18, 1755; died young. Sophia,

John Matthew,

Rebecca,

"

August 30, 1756,

44

Rebecca was married at Bethlehem, October 25, 1791, to the woolen weaver, Gottlieb Braun (Brown), a son of the West Indian missionary, Peter Braun. Their children were John, born December 12, 1792; Matthew, born November 20, 1794; Rebecca, born December 22, 1797; Maria and Fredericka, twins, born December 2, 1800, and Thomas Otto, born October 16, 1802. Sophia Magdalena was married at Bethlehem, July 17, 1796, to Dr. John Frederick Rudolphi, a son of George Christopher Rudolphi and his wife, Maria Elizabeth, m, n. Weidiger. Their children were: Sophia Frederica, born June 6, 1797; Charlotte Amelia, born July 25, 1800; Carl August, born December 26, 1802; Caroline, born May 31, 1804; Maria Elizabeth, born July 2, 1805; Henrietta Augusta, born August 16, 1806; Lydia, born November 16, 1807.

"The Half-Joe, or Joannes, was a Portugese gold coin, brought into circulation probably through the East India trade. Ettwein's letter indicates the value of Pennsylvania currency at that time, the coin being worth about $8.60.