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Historic Grist Miller’s House in Bethlehem to be restored with help from $500,000 grant
March 21st, 2024 | In The News
The Morning Call – Written by Lindsay Weber
The Historic Grist Miller’s House, part of Historic Bethlehem Museums and Sites, will be restored into an exhibition and demonstration space thanks to a half-million dollar federal grant.
The historic house is adjacent to the Luckenbach Mill, a former grist mill on Old York Road. The house’s history dates to 1782, when the lower levels of the building were constructed, and it served as the living quarters for the miller and his family. The two upper levels of the building were constructed in 1834.
The house is on the National Register of Historic Places, and is part of Bethlehem’s Colonial Industrial Quarter, the United States’ oldest industrial park.
The funding will help Historic Bethlehem Museums to restore the house into the Ralph G. Schwarz Center for Colonial Industries, named for one of the founders of the museums who spearheaded several restoration efforts of the early Moravian settlers’ landmarks.
The house will serve as a “hands-on interpretation and demonstration space” for teachings about Colonial industrial trades and crafts, as well as an exhibition space featuring the mill’s history.
The funding comes from Save America’s Treasures grant program, administered by the National Park Service. LoriAnn Wukitsch, president and CEO of Historic Bethlehem Museums and Sites, thanked U.S. Sen. Bob Casey for advocating for the funding in a statement.
“We are honored to have been chosen to receive this funding and appreciate the recognition and trust given to Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites by the National Park Service to preserve this iconic Bethlehem building and national treasure,” Wukitsch said in a statement.
Read the article on the Morning Call website.
