Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
—  City  —
Downtown Bethlehem in 2007
Seal
Nickname(s): The Christmas City[1], The Steel City
Location in Lehigh and Northampton Counties, Pennsylvania
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Location within Pennsylvania
Coordinates:
Country	United States
Commonwealth	Pennsylvania
Counties	Lehigh and Northampton
Founded	1741
Government
- Type	Mayor-Council
- Mayor	John B. Callahan
Area
- City	19.4 sq mi (50.3 km2)
- Land	19.3 sq mi (49.9 km2)
- Water	0.2 sq mi (0.4 km2)
- Urban	289.50 sq mi (749.79 km2)
- Metro	730.0 sq mi (1,174.82 km2)
Elevation	360 ft (109.728 m)
Population (2000)
- City	71,329
- Density	3,704.4/sq mi (594.0/km2)
- Urban	576,408
- Metro	740,395
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP Codes	18015-18018, 18020, 18025
Website	bethlehem-pa.gov

Graveyard with Bethlehem Steel in background, 1935. Photo by Walker Evans.

Main Street, downtown Bethlehem, 2007

South Bethlehem in 1935, looking north to houses and Bethlehem Steel

Bethlehem is a city in Lehigh and Northampton Counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 71,329, (2008 estimate 72,241),^[2] making it the sixth largest city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, and Reading.^[3]

Bethlehem lies in the center of the Lehigh Valley, a region of 731 square miles (1,893 km²) that is home to more than 800,000 people. The Valley embraces a trio of cities (Bethlehem, Allentown and Easton) within two counties (Lehigh and Northampton), making it Pennsylvania's third-largest metropolitan area. Smaller than Allentown but larger than Easton, Bethlehem is the Lehigh Valley's second most populous city.

There are three general sections of the city, North Bethlehem, South Bethlehem and West Bethlehem. Each of these sections blossomed at different times in the city's development and each contains areas recognized under the National Register of Historic Places.

In July 2006, Money magazine included Bethlehem as one of its "Top 100 Best Places to Live."^[4] It placed number 88.

History

The areas along the Delaware River and its tributaries in eastern Pennsylvania were long inhabited by indigenous peoples of various cultures. By the time of European contact, these areas were the historic territory of the Algonquian-speaking Lenape Nation, which had two main language families, the Unami and the Munsee. They traded with the Dutch and then English colonists in the mid-Atlantic area.

On Christmas Eve in 1741, David Nitschmann and Count Nicolaus von Zinzendorf, leading a small group of Moravians, founded the mission community of Bethlehem along the banks of the Monocacy Creek by the Lehigh River in the colony of Pennsylvania. They named the settlement after the town of Bethlehem in Judea, the birthplace of Jesus Christ. Originally it was a typical Moravian Settlement Congregation, where the Church owned all the property. Until the 1850s, only members of the Moravian Church were permitted to live in Bethlehem. The historic Brethren's House, Sisters' House, Widows' House and Gemeinhaus (Congregation House) with the Old Chapel are remnants of this period of communal living.

The Moravians ministered to regional Lenape Native Americans through their mission in the area, as well as further east in the New York colony. In the historic Bethlehem cemetery, converted Lenape were buried alongside the Moravians.

In 1762, Bethlehem built the first water works in America to pump water for public usage. While George Washington and his troops stayed in Valley Forge, his personal effects were stored at the farm of James Burnside in Bethlehem. This is now a historical museum (Burnside Plantation).^[5]

The prosperous village was incorporated into a free borough in the County of Northampton in 1845. After the Unity Synod of 1848, Bethlehem became the headquarters of the Northern Province of the Moravian Church in North America.^[6]

On March 27, 1900, the Bach Choir of Bethlehem presented the United States debut of German Lutheran Johann Sebastian Bach's Mass in B Minor in the city's Central Moravian Church.

Bethlehem Steel works, May 1881. Watercolor by Joseph Pennell.

Christmas star

On December 7, 1937, at a grand ceremony during the Great Depression, Mrs. Marion Brown Grace pulled a large switch to turn on the new Christmas street lights and a large wooden star. Mrs. Grace was the daughter of former South Bethlehem burgess, Charles F. Brown, and wife of Eugene Grace, President of Bethlehem Steel Corporation. Hundreds of citizens attended the ceremony and thousands more listened to the speeches and musical performances on the radio. This was the first year the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce adopted the nickname "Christmas City, USA".

The Bethlehem Globe-Times paid for the large wooden star erected on the top of South Mountain, at a cost of $460.

The star of Bethlehem viewed from Main Street at night

The star was attached to two wooden poles and was smaller than the current star. The star was created with four wooden planks, overlapped to create an eight point star. The dimensions were 60’ high, 51’ wide lit by 150 bulbs, 50 watts each. The installation of the star was done by PP&L and Bethlehem Water Department. The star was erected on the top of South Mountain, on property owned by the Water Department, located in Lower Saucon Township.

The Hotel Bethlehem was an appropriate location for such a ceremony, as it was the site of the first building in Bethlehem, a two-room log house. On Christmas Eve in 1741, the original settlers conducted their evening worship in this building. As their benefactor, Count Zinzendorf, observed the farm animals that shared the space and listened to their hymn, “Not Jerusalem, But Lowly Bethlehem”, he proclaimed the name of the settlement to be Bethlehem. The people gathered at the 1937 ceremony heard the same words when the Bach Choir sang the old German hymn, “Jesu, Rufe Mich (Jesus, Call Thou Me),” by Adam Drese.

In 1939 the wooden star was replaced with a star made of Bethlehem steel, at a cost of $5000. It had eight rays with the main horizontal ray extended eighty-one feet and the main vertical ray was fifty-three feet long. In 1967, the star was redesigned, and Plexiglas was installed to protect the 250 light bulbs, 50 watts each. It was installed on the old steel frame. This was ninety-one feet high and twenty-five feet wide at the base, with a depth of five feet, set in concrete. In the summer of 2006, the city repaired the base. A crew of municipal electricians changes the bulbs every two years. Beginning in the mid-1990s, the star was lit from 4:30 p.m. until midnight, every day of the year. This schedule continues today. During World War II, from 1941 to 1945 none of the Christmas decorations in Bethlehem were lit. City officials said the lit star made "too good of an air raid target" and “during the global strife it didn't seem right for the lights to be all lit up when our boys were out in the darkness fighting for us." When lit, the star can be seen from as far as Wind Gap, 20 miles (32 km) away. The star has become an important symbol for Bethlehem.

Center of United States heavy industry

Bethlehem became a center of heavy industry and trade during the industrial revolution. Bethlehem Steel, founded in 1857, began producing the first wide-flange structural shapes made in the United States. The company was the first to produce the now-ubiquitous "I-beam" used in construction of steel-framed buildings, including skyscrapers. It manufactured construction materials for numerous New York and other city skyscrapers, as well as major bridges.

The company was a major supplier of armor plate and ordnance products during World War I and World War II, including the manufacture of 1100 warships. After roughly 140 years of metal production at its Bethlehem plant, Bethlehem Steel ceased operations there in 1995. Overseas competition and declining demand had ended the business.

Geography

The Lehigh River in Bethlehem in 2007.

Monocacy Creek near downtown Bethlehem in 2007.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.4 square miles (50.3 km²), of which, 19.3 square miles (49.9 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (0.88%) is water.

Because large volumes of water were required in the steelmaking process, the city purchased 22,000 acres (89 km²) of land in the Pocono Mountains, where its water is stored in reservoirs.

Climate

Bethlehem's climate falls in the humid continental climate zone. Summers are typically hot and humid, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Precipitation is distributed throughout the year, with thunderstorms in the summer, showers in spring and fall, and snow in winter. The average high temperature varies widely, from 34 °F (1 °C) in January to 84.5 °F (29.2 °C) in July. The highest recorded temperature was 105 °F (41 °C), while the lowest recorded temperature was −16 °F (−27 °C).

Cityscape

Neighborhoods

Bethlehem is divided into four main areas: Center City, West Side, East Side, and South Side. The West Side is located in Lehigh County, while the other three neighborhoods are located in Northampton county.

• Center City is bounded by the Monocacy Creek to the west, Hanover and Bethlehem townships (both Northampton County) to the north, and Stefko Boulevard to the east.
• The West Side begins at the city's western border with Allentown and continues east to the Monocacy Creek and north to Hanover Township (Lehigh County).
• The East Side is bordered to the west by Center City and to the east by Bethlehem Township and Freemansburg. The East Side includes the Pembroke Village area.
• The South Side's borders are Fountain Hill to the west, the Lehigh River to the north, South Mountain to the south, and Hellertown to the east.

Neighboring municipalities

	Whitehall	Hanover	Nazareth
	Allentown		Easton
		Bethlehem
	Fountain Hill	Center Valley	Hellertown

Demographics

As of the 2008 United States Census Bureau estimates ^[9] Bethlehem had 71,608 residents. 78.8% of the population was White American, 4.8% African American, 2.9% Asian, 0.1% Native American, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 10.3% were of some other race, and 3.1% were of two or more races. Hispanic or Latino were 22.9% of the population, with 17.6% being of Puerto Rican descent. 5.0% of all housing units were vacant. 15.9% of all people were living below the poverty line.

As of the census^[10] of 2000, there were 71,329 people residing in the city, including 17,094 families and 28,116 households. The population density was 3,704.4 people per square mile (1,429.9/km²). There were 29,631 housing units at an average density of 1,538.8/sq mi (594.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.85% White, 3.64% African American, 0.26% Native American, 2.22% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 9.44% from other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 18.23% of the population. There were 28,116 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.1% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 32.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.0% under the age of 18, 14.4% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,815, and the median income for a family was $45,354. Males had a median income of $35,190 versus $25,817 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,987. About 11.1% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.7% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

The city is served by Lehigh Valley International Airport, which also serves Allentown, Pennsylvania and the greater Lehigh Valley.

Economy

In December 2006, Las Vegas Sands Corp was awarded a Category 2 Slot Machine License by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. LVSC began work on the site, categorized as both the largest brownfield redevelopment project in the nation and the largest casino development investment made to date in the Commonwealth. Its mission was to create reinvestment and urbanization in the area. At a projected cost of $743 million, the historic Bethlehem Steel plant is being redeveloped as a fully integrated resort, to include 3,000 slot machines, over 300 luxury hotel rooms, 9 restaurants, 200,000 square feet (19,000 m²) of premium retail outlet shopping, and 46,000 square feet (4,300 m²) of flexible multi-purpose space.^[11] In 2007, the casino resort company of Las Vegas Sands began the construction of Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem. The Sands Casino has been projected to bring in approximately one million dollars in revenue per day as of 2009.

Another major economic anchor to the city is St. Luke's Hospital located in the Fountain Hill section of the city. That Hospital and Health Network is the second largest of its type in the Lehigh Valley.

Politics and government

The city government is composed of a mayor and a seven-person city council. The current mayor of Bethlehem is John B. Callahan, who was elected to his second term in November 2005. His election marks the 10th consecutive year a Democrat has held the city's highest office.^[12]

Callahan is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,^[13] a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Federally, Bethlehem is part of Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district, represented by Republican Charlie Dent, elected in 2004.

Crime

Bethlehem has a significantly lower crime rate than that of Allentown and Easton. In 2008, Bethlehem had an overall crime index of 244.4^[14], while Allentown's crime index was 510.4^[15] and Easton's crime index was 379.2^[16]. The United States' average was 320.9. Also, Bethlehem's violent crime rate was more than half of Allentown's rate. Bethlehem's crime is often concentrated in low-income areas, such as the Pembroke Village neighborhood.

Education

Colleges and universities

Moravian College's south campus in Bethlehem.

Bethlehem is home to two institutes of higher education. Lehigh University, located on South Mountain on the city's South Side, has 4,800 undergraduates and 2,100 graduate students.^[17] The university, which was founded in 1865, was ranked #35 in U.S. News & World Report's 2010 ratings of America's best colleges.^[18]

Moravian College, located in the center city area, is a small, highly respected liberal arts college. Founded in 1742 as Bethlehem Female Seminary, Moravian is the sixth oldest college in the nation.^[19] Besides undergraduate programs, the college also includes the Moravian Theological Seminary, a graduate school with approximately 100 students from more than a dozen religious denominations.^[20]

Northampton Community College is also located in neighboring Bethlehem Township.

Primary and secondary education

Bethlehem is home to the Bethlehem Area School District (BASD), which covers a 40-square-mile (100 km²) area that includes the city, the boroughs of Fountain Hill and Freemansburg, and Bethlehem and Hanover Townships.^[21] The district operates two high schools for grades 9-12: Liberty High School near center city and Freedom High School in neighboring Bethlehem Township.

The district also has four public middle schools for grades 6-8: Broughal Middle School, East Hills Middle School, Nitschmann Middle School, and Northeast Middle School. In addition, BASD maintains 19 public elementary schools for grades K-5. Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Performing Arts (LVPA) is also operated by the district, though it accepts students in grades 9-12 from throughout Northampton and surrounding counties.

Bethlehem has two private high schools: Bethlehem Catholic High School, which serves grades 9-12, and Moravian Academy, which serves all primary and secondary school grades. Notre Dame High School, located just north of the city, also serves grades 9 through 12.

Bethlehem Catholic, Freedom and Liberty all compete athletically in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley Conference.

Media

Bethlehem's daily newspaper, The Globe-Times, ceased publication in 1991. The Morning Call, based in Allentown, and The Express-Times, based in Easton, are now the city's dominant newspapers. The newspapers used to have offices on Bethlehem's historic Main Street, separated by only a couple of buildings, but the Express-Times has moved several blocks away. Other smaller newspapers include the Bethlehem Press; an award-winning weekly, Pulse Weekly, based in Allentown; Eastern Pennsylvania Business Journal, based in Bethlehem; and Lehigh Valley Sports Extra, a popular all-sports monthly newspaper founded in 2001.

Religious broadcaster WBPH is the only television station licensed in Bethlehem, though WLVT Channel 39, a PBS affiliate, has its operations in the city. WFMZ Channel 69, an independent station, is based in neighboring Allentown. Bethlehem is part of the Philadelphia DMA and its cable systems also receive select radio and television broadcasts from New York City.

Bethlehem has two licensed commercial radio stations, variety WGPA AM, and hard rock WZZO FM (though the latter's facilities are in Whitehall Township). There is also one non-commercial station, WLVR FM, operated by Lehigh University. In addition, public radio station WDIY FM, while licensed in Allentown, maintains its facilities in Bethlehem. There are numerous other stations broadcast from Allentown and Easton representing a variety of commercial formats, as well as several translators of public stations from Philadelphia and New Jersey.

Sports

In the early part of the 20th century, Bethlehem was a hotbed of American soccer, with the corporate Bethlehem Steel team, named Bethlehem Steel F.C. after the company, winning the 1918-19 championship in the National Association Football League (NAFL), and then winning what amounted to national championships three more times during the next decade (1920-21 in the NAFL; 1926-27 in the American Soccer League I; and in 1928-29 winning the EPSL II). The Bethlehem Steel sides consisted largely of British imported players and also had the distinction of being the first American professional soccer team to play in Europe, which it did during its tour of Sweden in 1919. The team also won the U.S. Open Cup, now called the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup after billionaire sports franchise owner Lamar Hunt, five times beginning in 1915, and for the last time in 1926.

The Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League hold their pre-season training camp each summer at the football facilities of Bethlehem's Lehigh University. The Eagles camp in Bethlehem is among the most highly-attended training camps in the entire NFL, drawing thousands of fans to each practice. During training camp, Eagles' practices typically are held twice daily (at 8:45am and 2:45pm) and are usually open to the public. An estimated 10,000 fans attended Eagles practice daily, the highest of any NFL team's training camp, in the summer of 2006.^[22][23]

Bethlehem also is home to Lehigh University's Stabler Arena, which hosts numerous athletic and music events. Stabler is home to the Indoor Football League's Lehigh Valley Steelhawks and to Lehigh University collegiate basketball.

Bethlehem Steel F.C., founded in 1911, was one of the most successful early American soccer clubs. Bethlehem Steel won the American Cup in 1914, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919 and 1924. Additionally, they won the National Cup, currently the U.S. Open Cup, in 1915, 1916, 1918, 1919, and 1926, the Allied Amateur Cup in 1914 and the Lewis Cup in 1928. The team folded in 1930.

The Lehigh Valley RFC rugby union team play their matches in Bethlehem at Monocacy Park.

Bethlehem-area high schools compete athletically in the Lehigh Valley Conference.

Recreation and entertainment

The city is famous for its annual Musikfest, a largely free, ten-day music festival that draws over a million people to the city each August. Other festivals include The Celtic Classic, which celebrates Celtic culture, food and music^[24], and the SouthSide Film Festival, a non-competitive, not-for-profit film festival. The city has also been the past, and current host of the North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARFest, a popular 3-day Progressive rock music event.

The Bethlehem Area Public Library is a popular destination for recreation and entertainment^[25]. The Banana Factory houses studios of area artists and is open to the public every first Friday of the month.^[26] Touchstone Theatre, also on the SouthSide, houses the Valley's only professional resident theatre company, producing and presenting original theatre performances^[27].

Historic Bethlehem features many specialized boutiques, spas and nightclubs along its main streets.

On the first Friday of the month, the businesses of the Southside Shopping District hosts First Friday,^[28] a celebration of arts and culture. Stores, restaurants and art galleries stay open late and offer special discounts, refreshments, gallery openings and more.

Lehigh University's Zoellner Arts Center offers a variety of musical and dramatic events through the year.

The city is the location of Pennsylvania's largest casino, the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem, located on the former Bethlehem Steel property.

The Lehigh Canal provides hiking and biking opportunities along the canal towpath which follows the Lehigh River in Bethlehem.

The western part of the former Bethlehem Steel site was selected as a filming location for the movie Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen, which was released in 2009. In the film, the Steel's blast furnaces and surrounding area are used for the opening sequence of the film to represent Shanghai.

City parks

Bethlehem owns 39 park sites, encompassing 568 acres (2.3 km²). Among the city's parks are Buchannan Park, Elmwood Park, Illick's Mill Park, Johnston Park, Monocacy Park, Rockland Park, Rose Garden, Sand Island, Saucon Park, Sell Field, South Mountain Park, Triangle Park, West Side Park, and Yosko Park.^[29][30]

Notable natives and residents

• Jeff Andretti, is an American race car driver.
• John Andretti, professional race car driver, raced in NASCAR, and currently races in the IndyCar Series.
• Michael Andretti, professional racing team owner, former professional race car driver.
• David A. Bader, Georgia Tech professor.
• Chuck Bednarik, former professional football player, Philadelphia Eagles, Pro Football Hall of Fame member.
• Michael Behe, biochemist at Lehigh University, advocate of intelligent design.
• Stephen Vincent Benét, American writer.
• Pete Carril, former professional and collegiate basketball coach.
• Alexandra Chando, actress, As The World Turns.
• H.D., writer, poet.
• Russell Davenport, publisher and writer.
• Jimmy DeGrasso, former drummer, Megadeth.
• Richard Diehl, archaeologist, academic and Mesoamericanist scholar.
• Edwin Drake, oil driller.
• Jonathan Frakes, director and actor, Star Trek: The Next Generation.
• Eugene Grace, industrialist, President of Bethlehem Steel, 1916-1945.
• Mel Harris, actress, ABC's thirtysomething.
• George Hrab, musician.
• Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, professional wrestler and actor.
• Gelsey Kirkland, ballerina.
• Nathan Homer Knorr, religious leader and 3rd president, Jehovah's Witnesses.
• Gary Lavelle, former professional baseball player, Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays.
• Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
• Alix Olson, spoken word poet.
• Billy Packer, CBS basketball analyst.
• Daniel Roebuck, actor, ABC's Lost.
• Thom Schuyler, country music singer and songwriter
• Charles M. Schwab, industrialist, former President of U.S. Steel, later incorporated as Bethlehem Steel in 1904.
• Sheetal Sheth, actress, Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World.
• John Spagnola, former professional football player, Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks.
• Donald Smaltz, lawyer
• Gary Mark Smith, artist, author, and global street photographer.
• Sarah Strohmeyer, novelist, creator of Bubbles.
• Jonathan Taylor Thomas, actor, ABC's Home Improvement.

Related communities

Sister cities

• Murska Sobota, Slovenia
• Tondabayashi, Japan
• Schwäbisch Gmünd, Germany

Twin cities

• Allentown, Pennsylvania
• Easton, Pennsylvania

References

External links

• Official website.
• Official visitor website.
• Bethlehem travel guide from Wikitravel.
• Bethlehem, Pennsylvania: A Moravian Settlement in Colonial America, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan.

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