David Nitschmann der Wagner, or David "Father" Nitschmann Sr., (1676, Zauchtenthal/ Suchdol nad Odrou - 1758,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

) was a Czech-born Moravian missionary and carpenter.

Biography

Born in Zauchtenthal, Moravia, on September 18, 1676, David Nitschmann was a son of Johannes Nitschmann and Catharina (Friedrickin) Nitschmann. Following the death of his parents in 1692, he continued to reside in Moravia. On November 15, 1700, he wed Anna Schneider, a daughter of Andreas Schneider. The marriage would last thirty-five years. Sometimes referred to as "Father" David Nitschmann, to distinguish him from other famous David Nitschmanns, he was the father of

Anna Nitschmann Anna Caritas Nitschmann, Countess von Zinzendorf und Pottendorf, (24 November 1715, Kunín, Moravia – 21 May 1760, Herrnhut, Lusatia) was a Moravian Brethren missionary (''Missionarin''), lyrical poet, and the second wife of Count N ...

, second wife of

Count Zinzendorf Nikolaus Ludwig, Reichsgraf von Zinzendorf und Pottendorf (26 May 1700 – 9 May 1760) was a German religious and social reformer, bishop of the Moravian Church, founder of the Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine, Christian mission pioneer and a major fig ...

. Tradition has it that Zinzendorf unofficially adopted him as his father. Nitschmann moved to

Herrnhut Herrnhut ( Sorbian: ''Ochranow''; cs, Ochranov) is an Upper Lusatian town in the Görlitz district in Saxony, Germany, known for the community of the Moravian Church established by Nicolas Ludwig, Count von Zinzendorf in 1722. Geography It is ...

in 1725. He then traveled to

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands Saint Thomas ( da, Sankt Thomas) is one of the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea which, together with Saint John, Water Island, Hassel Island, and Saint Croix, form a county-equivalent and constituent district of the United States Virgin ...

, where he served as a Moravian missionary and where his wife Anna died. Finally, he moved to the

Province of Pennsylvania The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as the Pennsylvania Colony, was a British North American colony founded by William Penn after receiving a land grant from Charles II of England in 1681. The name Pennsylvania ("Penn's Woods") refers to ...

in North America. Arriving in Nazareth on December 14, 1740, he helped to expand and strengthen that community until March 1741, when he and his nephew, David Nitschmann, began work on building the new community of

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton and Lehigh Counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, Bethlehem had a total population of 75,781. Of this, 55,639 were in Northampton County and 19,3 ...

. Joining them in this endeavor were Johann Bühner, Martin Mack, Matthias Seibold, Anton Seiffert, and David Zeisberger. He remained active with this project until January 1747. He died in Bethlehem on April 14, 1758, and was buried in "God's Acre" cemetery there."David Nitschmann, Sr. (1676-1758), Bethlehem Diary, Volume XVIII, 1758, 267-79," Bethlehem Digital History Project, Moravian University.

Legacy

Nitschmann is sometimes considered the founder of Bethlehem, but that is not correct, although he was a leading figure in the early days.

References

External links

David Nitschmann, Sr. (1676-1758), Bethlehem Diary, Volume XVIII, 1758, 267-79
" Bethlehem Digital History Project, Moravian University, retrieved online December 23, 2022.
David “Father” Nitschmann (1676-1758), oil on canvas by Johann Valentin Haidt (1700-1780)
" Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: Moravian Archives, retrieved from the web archives December 23, 2022. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nitschmann, David der Wagner People from Pennsylvania 1676 births 1758 deaths Moravian Church missionaries Czech people of the Moravian Church Czech Protestant missionaries Immigrants to the Thirteen Colonies Protestant missionaries in the United States Virgin Islands