Moravian Preservation Master Plan.indb - Society for College and ...

Moravian College • Preservation Master Plan
Current Use
Frueauff House was used until 2006 as the residence
of Moravian College’s president. Today, it is the
residence for the Dean of the college.
Treatment
Frueauff House has already undergone a
Restoration treatment, when it was returned to
what was believed to be its original appearance in
1961. For the future, its recommended treatment is
Rehabilitation. It is recommended that the house
continue in its historic use as a residence for college
presidents or other administrators, and that any
remaining historic fabric and distinctive features
be retained during future updates.
Maintenance issues noted at Frueauff House
include:
• Clean and repair gutter on north side of
house.
• Direct water away from foundation,
particularly at northwest corner, and repair
parging at that location.
• The front wooden steps need repainting.
The Widows’ House was soon filled, and was
extended 20 feet eastward in 1795, adding two
more residential units to the four suites on each
floor. In 1889, a large rear annex was constructed
in Queen Anne style, and connects to the original
house with a hyphen. Funding for the annex was
provided by John Jordan, Jr., of Philadelphia, who
set up an endowment for the house in 1873 and
made provisions for who would be eligible to live
there (Hamilton 1988:25). Historic photos indicate
that the front entrance porch was changed from a
simple gabled structure to the current flat-roofed
Italianate porch during the late 1800s, possibly in
conjunction with the annex addition.
The house was remodeled inside during the
1980s, and now contains 13 apartments and seven
guest rooms. The Widows’ House remained in
the possession of the Moravian Church until
the mid-1990s, when it was purchased from the
Moravian Church Northern Province by Moravian
College. Widows have occupied the house
continuously since its construction and continue to
live there today. The building also houses Moravian
Theological Seminary students.
Widows’ House – 1768
Historical Development
The Widows’ House was constructed by Bethlehem’s
Moravian congregation in 1768 to provide a
residence for the widows of the community.
Although the choir system was phasing out, a sizable
home for widows to live out the remainder of their
lives was urgently needed. Bethlehem’s widows
had been living in Nazareth until this point due to
lack of space for them in Bethlehem, and planning
for the building began in 1760. The new building
site was originally part of the “congregational
garden.” Eleven widows were the first occupants.
The interior had a central stair hall, longitudinal
corridors, and four suites (two or three rooms) per
floor with individual fireplaces. The house attracted
the interest of visitors to Bethlehem, and was visited
by such prominent guests as Martha Washington
(June 1779), George Washington (July 1782), and
Alexander Hamilton (May 1791). Beginning in 1784,
the widows helped prepare meals for the nearby
girls’ boarding school, which provided them with
needed income (Hamilton 1988:24-25). It is not clear
how long this arrangement lasted.
Figure 8-139. Widows’ House, view to southwest; note east end
addition (JMA 2008).
Signifi cance
The Widows’ House is the second-oldest building
on Moravian’s campus and is another example of
Germanic stone architecture, although in a simpler
fashion. It was constructed 20 years after the Single
Brethren’s House and other early Moravian buildings
on Church Street and in a time when other choirs
in the community were abandoning the communal
living system. Unlike the other choirs, however, its
demographic has continued to need it since. Its use
as a home for widows has been continuous from
John Milner Associates • October 2009 • Chapter 8 • Historic Buildings • 217