“Life is one big road with lots of
signs.”
~ Bob Marley
~ 1945 ~ 1981
The iconic Hotel Bethlehem sign
atop the historic hotel lets travelers on various roads leading to the
Pennsylvania town know they’ve arrived in The Christmas City. A trace of snow
can be seen below the chimney as winter prepares to segue into spring on this mid-March
afternoon in this monochrome capture.
During the Prohibition in 1922, Charles M. Schwab built the
Historic Hotel Bethlehem as it’s known it today. However, that little spot in
the town of Bethlehem has a history with deep roots.
In 1741, a group of Moravian missionaries built, on that very spot, the
famous First House of Bethlehem. It was a log house, built to shelter the
Moravians as they expanded their presence in the area. The structure also
served as a stable. On December 24, 1741, the leader of the Moravian
missionaries, Count Nicholaus Ludwig Von Zinzendorf, sang a song about
Bethlehem, which inspired the citizens to name the town.
The Moravians were very dedicated to their mission. Using this spot as a
home base, they started “schooling the unschooled” and converting the “heathen”
indigenous people. The Moravians were so passionate and dedicated that within
20 years, they had built 50 more buildings and were working on several
different industries. All from within the structures they had built.
In the late 18th century, under the first presidency, George Washington, the
First House of Bethlehem was converted to the Golden Eagle Hotel. The hotel
operated in this incarnation until 1919, when the building started housing
convalescing soldiers returning from World War I.
In 1922, Schwab’s fortune was on the rise and he was one of the stars of
American Steel. Schwab built the hotel to cater to the clients of the enormous
Bethlehem Steel Company and even back then, it featured amenities equivalent to
modern day luxuries, such as, a fitness center, a barber shop, shoe shine, and
coffee shop.
Nowadays, the Historic Hotel Bethlehem proudly displays its story in its
lower lobby's Hall of History. Artifacts from the town’s history (religious
settlement to industrial boomtown) such as photographs and printed materials
are showcased as well. A 1936 George Gray painting located in the Mural Room
depicts the transformation of the culture surrounding the building.
Historic
Hotel Bethlehem, a member of Historic Hotels of America since 2002, dates back
to 1922. The year 2024 marked the fourth consecutive year Historic Hotel
Bethlehem was named America’s Best Historic Hotel by USA Today – a grand slam. Bruce
Haines is the longtime owner of the hotel.
Bethlehem is known
as The Christmas City. Since that Christmas Eve 1741when a small group of Moravians were singing a hymn with the
stanza “Not Jerusalem, Lowly Bethlehem” Count Nicolaus Ludwig Von Zinzendorf
christened this little town “Bethlehem.” Since that time Christmas in Bethlehem
has been central to the city’s identity. From the first documented decorated
Christmas tree in America to the efforts of the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce
to get Bethlehem nicknamed “Christmas City USA” in 1937, to the current time
when both sides of the river boast Christmas markets filled with artisan craft,
retail and food vendors, Bethlehem is rife with one Christmas celebration after
another.
