Pilger Ruh, Bethel Township, Berks County

I've mentioned in previous posts that my good friend Rachel used to work for Historic Bethlehem before she moved out of state. One thing she told me is a running joke for the staff and volunteers is that "Count Zinzendorf is everywhere." The Count, as you may remember from my post about the first house of Bethlehem, is the one who gave that city its name and was extremely involved in the Moravian movement of the 18th century.

It's really not an exaggeration to say that he's everywhere, either, given the number of times I've come across his name in my work. However, while I'm used to him cropping up during research in Northampton County, I wasn't expecting to find his name on one of the markers in Berks County, more than seventy miles away.

Fort Deshler, Whitehall, Lehigh County

Hello and Happy 2019, history fans! I'm looking forward to another year of sharing with you the fascinating stories of our beloved commonwealth. To start us off, I'm back in my native Lehigh County for a marker which I pass almost every day.

A few months ago I told you about Fort Allen, up in Carbon County, which was built during the French and Indian War to help protect the local settlers from Native American raids. In fact, Pennsylvania was home to quite a number of similar forts, most of which are gone. One of these stood in Whitehall, near what today is Route 145, and it was called Fort Deshler.

The First House, Bethlehem, Northampton County

Because of the shifted update schedule, this will be the final MarkerQuest adventure for 2018; and because it's the week leading up to Christmas, I've been saving this specific subject for this very moment. Bethlehem is, as the locals know, "the Christmas City." What a lot of people might not know is that this isn't just because it's called Bethlehem - it's because it was literally founded on Christmas Eve.

The Philadelphia Zoo, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County

It's really cold in Pennsylvania right now - no surprise, it's December. Speaking for myself, I don't do particularly well in the cold, so as I write this post I've bundled myself into a sort of fleece burrito and I'm thinking warm thoughts. 

I don't know if I agree that it's always sunny in Philadelphia, but it was definitely sunny the last time I went down there. Over the summer, my husband Kevin and I were startled to learn that my best friend Andrea had - despite growing up an hour away from it - never been to the Philadelphia Zoo. Naturally, this needed to be rectified.

First Reformed Church, Lancaster, Lancaster County

I'm in the city of Lancaster at least once a year, and I consider it one of my absolute favorite cities. I go there for a weekend with my friends in order to attend Zenkaikon, an annual gathering of fans of all sorts, and the square outside Lancaster Central Market is overflowing with costumed characters mixed with the (tolerantly amused) regular residents.

We were there again this year, in the spring, and I was at that time awaiting permission from the PHMC to set up this blog. My friends, who were a lot more confident than I was that it was going to happen, were encouraging me to take pictures of the signs and subjects that we found while walking around town. One of these was a beautiful church with an open garden, and we spent quite a few minutes admiring the First Reformed United Church of Christ.

Dery Silk Mill, Catasauqua, Lehigh County

I ended up doing this week's blog post a few days later than usual, on account of some bad weather in my area. My internet was extremely unreliable. I appreciate the patience shown by my Facebook followers, and now I'm taking you back to my hometown of Catasauqua for a look at another famous industrialist.

As I mentioned when talking about David Thomas, I grew up in the tiny borough which is proud to be known as the birthplace of the industrial revolution. The first thirtymumble years of my life were spent on Race Street, the town's main drag, which is also home to the Dery Silk Mill - a cornerstone of the company which was once the largest single private producer of silk in the entire world. 

The Penn Relays, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County

As I mentioned back when I first started this blog, I'm approaching it somewhat like the quest journal of a video game. Well, sometimes in my favorite games, there are quests that I can't undertake alone; sometimes things are just simply inaccessible to me. That's when I have to rely on one of my companions for assistance. Whether they build a bridge, lend me a horse, or just act as my bodyguard on the mission, it's always good to have friends.

Today's blog post is crafted with the help of one of my real life "NPCs." My former coworker Sheila was kind enough to take some pictures of a couple of markers and their subjects down in Philadelphia and send them to me.