As this year marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence we will be publishing a series of monthly posts highlighting collection materials that illuminates different aspects of the lives and activities of Moravians during this tumultuous period in history. 

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In the previous post in this series we looked at how the Moravian Church’s commitment to pacifism and desire to limit involvement with the wider world led to conflict with their neighbors as the American Revolution began and how they used their relationships with influential figures such as Benjamin Franklin to try and address this. Of course not all Moravians shared this desire for isolation and as much as this worried church leadership such people also proved another valuable resource for navigating the relationship between the Moravians and their neighbors.

William Henry (1729-1786) was a gunsmith, prominent merchant, and politician [1] residing in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, when he joined the Moravian congregation there in 1764. In contrast to places like Bethlehem, where only Moravians were permitted to live, congregations like Lancaster’s shared their community with people of other denominations and faiths. This greatly concerned Moravian leaders, who felt that the temptation to become enmeshed in worldly affairs interfered with the focus on God and mission work that they desired for their members.

In many ways Henry epitomized this worry as he was not only a well-connected merchant but also actively supported American independence and held a number of positions, including serving in the Pennsylvania Assembly, being part of the local Committee of Safety [2], and being Assistant Commissary General for the Lancaster district.

 

Despite the concern of many Moravian leaders over a member being so heavily involved in the growing conflict, they also recognized the potential of such a person to help support the church in such a tumultuous time. This is well demonstrated by the page from the 1777 diary of the Lititz congregation shown above, which reads in part:

August den 1ten

Besucht Bruder Matth[a]eus in Lancaster und hatte sonderlich mit dem Bruder Billy Henry eine ausführliche Unterredung von den gegenwärtigen gefährlichen Landes Umständen.

Which translates as:

August 1st

Brother Matthæus [3] visited in Lancaster and had, in particular, a detailed discussion about the present dangerous circumstances in this land with Brother Billy Henry.

This account of a Moravian bishop apparently seeking out William Henry to discuss the situation shows how church leadership recognized his postion and how he might be a valuable connection, which would soon become invaluable when a number of members of the Lititz congregation faced arrest for their pacifism. An entry in the Lititz diary from August 21st reads:

“One heard that last night in our township all non-associators [4] were supposedly round up under armed guard and taken away. And so it happened here at midday while the Brethren were eating lunch, as six soldiers occupied the doorways oft he Brethren’s House, and the officer ordered the Brethren belonging to the five first classes to go along tot he captain; various brothers refused to go along with [him]; the guard however insisted upon it and forced them all, namely nine single brothers and five married brothers, and thus they were taken as sheep, which was observed in melancholy. The Watchword (Daily Text) was very remarkable to us. “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” (2 Thessalonians 2:15) We surrender ourselves to your care and to all your blessed ways, with a thousand joys; there you shall lead us to graze as lamb and shepherd.”

Fortunately for the imprisoned Moravians, William Henry’s status as a member of the Committee of Safety helped secure their release, with the diary for August 23rd reading:

“Today’s Watchword (Daily Text) encouraged our hearts: ” Put on the armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the schemings of the devil.” Keep us unblemished, hidden in your fortress of wounds, untouched by any enemy, much less ensnared. We especially wish this for our brothers who are now in Lancaster under armed guard. This evening we also had the joy of seeing them all again with us; praise be to the Saviour, who has directed matters for the time being so that no harm has come to anyone; but rather, their appearance before the Committee of Safety has resulted in them and many of our neighbors being released, until further orders; Brother Billy Henry has done his utmost in this regard.”

While the early Moravian Church desired to remain apart from the wider world, this proved impossible and members of the church had to make difficult decisions about how to manage the ensuing conflict, while the church’s leadership pragmatically took advantage of their contacts in the outside world, including both friends like Benjamin Franklin and members such as William Henry.  We hope that you will join us next month when we look at a very different example of a Moravian who took sides in the Revolutionary War, that of a pastor who supported the British.

[1] While beyond the scope of this post, Henry was also the first patron of the artist Benjamin West and experimented with powering a vessel with a steam engine. It is known that a young Robert Fulton visited Henry and while unproven it has been suggested that this may have influenced Fulton’s eventual design of the first commercially viable steamship.

[2] Such committees were formed to lead communities between the removal of royal officials and the establishment of new local governments after the Revolutionary War

[3] Bishop Matthæus Gottfried Hehl (1705–1787), who resided in Lititz, was responsible for oversight of “country congregations” (Landgemeinen), including Lancaster.

[4] “non-associators” were individuals who refused to join or support local militias

Resources:

• West, Benjamin. William Henry. in. The Life of William Henry, Francis Jordan, Press of the New Era printing company, 1910, frontispiece

• Diary of the Lititz Congregation, LitCong 27, Moravian Archives, Bethlehem

Further Reading:

For further information on this topic we recommend this article, which is available in our reading room or through a free JSTOR account:

Gordon, Scott Paul, “Entangled by the World: William Henry of Lancaster and “Mixed” Living in Moravian Town and Country Congregations,” Journal of Moravian History no. 8 (2010): 7-52, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41179899?read-now=1&seq=6

This interesting biography of William Henry is in our library collection and available in our reading room or online through the Internet Archive here.

Jordan, Francis. The Life of William Henry, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 1729-1786: patriot, military officer, inventor of the steamboat; a contribution to revolutionary history, Press of the New Era printing company, 1910

A selection of digitized material related to William Henry and his descendants can be accessed through the Moravian Historical Society here.