Heritage

Our Hungarian Heritage

Hungarians—the largest ethnic group of immigrants to settle in South Bethlehem—outnumbered the Czechs, Slovaks, German, Italians, Greeks, Poles, Ukraines, Croatian, Slovenes and Windish by the year 1910.

These Magyar immigrants from Hapsburg Austria-Hungary, added to the collective diversity of ethnic groups who labored amidst the clanging metal, searing flames and belching smoke of Bethlehem Steel. Unfortunately, ethnic Hungarians were grossly misunderstood by Bethlehem’s reserved and well-established north side, who lumped all Southside immigrants from Central, Southern and Eastern Europe as “foreigners.” This misunderstanding created ethnic stereotypes perpetuated by newspaper editors who snidely characterized Hungarians as “Huns” and “Hunkies.”

Like most immigrants, the Hungarians got over it and went to work at the blast furnaces at Bethlehem Steel or had their own businesses. Miraculously, Hungarian Lutherans, Jews and Roman Catholics were able to establish ethnic churches with every cent they earned: Zion Hungarian Lutheran Church at E. Fourth and State Sts.; Brith Sholom Community Center at Brodhead and E. Packer Aves.; and St. John Capistrano Roman Catholic parish—a church, a parochial school and a rectory on E. Fourth and Hayes Sts.

Pearl Pondelek Bodor, whose parents Frank and Elizabeth (Ceban) Pondelek, owned Hygrade Meat Market at 418 E. Fourth St. during the 1930s, recalled a favorite Hungarian tradition: “It centered around New Year’s Eve,“ she said. “My brothers, Jimmy and Alfred Pondelek went around to every southside hotel and bar, playing Hungarian songs on their violins.”

Hungarians like John F. Stefko attended the South Bethlehem Business School, then established a liquor store on Third St.; D.B. Czentericz was proprietor of East End Pharmacy on E. Third St.; Adolph Friedman owned Friedmans Hotel at 429 E. Third St.; and Frank Biro, an accomplished violinist and sculptor, who opened his photograph studio on E. Fourth St., earned the reputation of imaging thousands of Southside immigrant portraits and weddings.

The Municipal Market House opened in 1892: it was home of the mayor’s office, the police department and the jail, aka “the Enjoying more “Hungarian Nights” lockup.” But its most important attraction was the first-floor market itself—a favorite destination of north siders and Southside immigrants who shopped side by side until the market closed in the 1960s. In time, the “Hungarian” presence soon became part of the total cloth of Bethlehem in the form of seasonal, and of course—culinary traditions.

Classic Hungarian dishes still enjoyed by Bethlehemites today include: Beef Goulash (Bogracs Gulyas); Pork Goulash (Szekely Gulyas); Potato and Egg Casserole (Rakott Krumpli); Chicken Paprikas (Csirke Paprikas), Filled Cabbage (Sarma) and Dumplings and Rye bread. Meals finished with desserts in flaky crusts—Apple Strudel (Jabocni Retas), Cabbage Strudel (Zelnati Retas), Cheese Strudel (Sir Retas)—and the 19thcentury dessert invented by a Hungarian chef . . . the eight-layer Dobos Torte.

Red and white Hungarian wines were served during dinner, followed by a dessert wine—the sweet Tokay “cordial.”

Enjoying more “Hungarian Nights”

The collaboration between Starters Riverport and the SBHS on ‘Hungarian Nights’ created a family dinner atmosphere for many who enjoyed authentic Hungarian fare, like the Donchez family (above) on the evening of Nov. 2, 2011. photo: Dana Grubb

Hungarian Christmas Traditions

South Bethlehem Hungarians fondly recalled Christmas in their native Hungary as a festive time of year when family members got together to celebrate the holiday.

Candles were placed in the windows as a symbolic greeting to those absent from home, and in memory of deceased family members.

The Christmas tree played a very important part in the celebration of Christmas: in the village square, as well as in the home, evergreen trees were decorated with ornaments which originated from their regions.

Edibles used for tree decorations included foil-wrapped Christmas candies, cookies, apples and decorated whole walnuts. Other ornaments included wax candles and hand-crafted items.

Carolers were heard as they strolled about the village, carrying a huge illuminated star and perhaps a Nativity scene. Nativity plays were very popular and could be found in almost every village.

At home, a great deal of time was spent preparing foods of all kinds for the Christmas meal, while the table was set with

Christmas Eve was an occasion of family activity. Before the evening meal, the family gathered around the Christmas tree; after a short prayer, gifts were placed near the tree. When the first star appeared in the sky, the evening meal was served.

After the meal was completed, families attended church services together, recalling the birth of Jesus Christ. Returning home from church, family members eagerly opened their Christmas gifts.

The Emergence of Industrial Pioneers in South Bethlehem

Samuel Wetherill established the Pennsylvania and Lehigh Zinc Company by 1853.

In 1848, the Moravians of Bethlehem, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, divested 1,380 acres of farmland situated along the Lehigh River, flanked by picturesque South Mountain.

After the Civil War in 1865, this idyllic setting became a borough named South Bethlehem . . . a community of industrial pioneers, who, combined with ethnic immigrant labor, would impact the nation—and the world.

Bethlehem, Pa. has a long and remarkable record of industrial and technological achievement. Since its earliest days as a religious enterprise of the Moravian Brethren, the practical genius of this community has left many a curious traveler awestruck.

The 18th Century wooden age knowhow of millwright Henry Antes, the mechanical brilliance of 19th Century ironmaster John Fritz, and the genius of steel titan Charles Schwab in the 20th Century, are but a few of those talented individuals responsible for the industrial legacy we proudly share today. There are many others indeed.

Samuel Wetherill (1821-1890)
Chemist, Industrialist, Civil War Soldier

Among those oft forgotten is a man by the name of Samuel Wetherill, who came to Bethlehem from his native Philadelphia in the early 1850’s. As a descendant of one of Colonial America’s most enterprising families, Wetherill came to Bethlehem, not by chance as one might expect.

Two generations of Wetherills prior to Samuel’s era pioneered the early chemicals industry in America with the production of numerous products, including white lead carbonate — an ingredient that revolutionized the manufacture of house paints globally, for both its adhesive and covering properties.

Samuel came to Bethlehem hoping to extend his family's control of the paints industry; between 1852 and 1853, he set up the first industrial colossus for the manufacture of zinc oxide — an experimental substitute for the proven, yet expensive, white lead.

Wetherill supervised the construction of brick and frame structures for this purpose in 1852. The enterprise was situated on four acres, just east of the present Fahy Bridge, and employed technology both developed and patented by Wetherill himself.

His “furnace process” reduced raw ore to its powdered mineral form, and his “tower process” extracted and isolated it from a sundry of impure by-products. The zinc oxide was then bagged and shipped to market.

The raw materials for Wetherill’s manufactory where mined just over the ridge of South Mountain in Saucon Valley and brought to the operation along the Lehigh by packhorse and mule train. The Pennsylvania and Lehigh Zinc Company was chartered in March of 1853.

On October 13 of the same year, the first “white zinc” made in the United States was made at the ZincWorks. Wetherill later pioneered the manufacture of metallic zinc spelter and sheet zinc.

By 1855, Asa Packer surveyed tracks of the Lehigh Valley Railroad between the ZincWorks and the Lehigh River. By 1860, the Bethlehem Iron Company was formed east of the ZincWorks with the intent of producing rails.

After the Civil War, on August 21, 1865, the Borough of South Bethlehem was incorporated. Later, the ZincWorks was absorbed into the Bethlehem Steel Company in the early 20th Century, having employed in excess of 700 persons during its peak years.

Wetherill’s Southside operation is credited with bringing to South Bethlehem the first significant influx of foreign-born labor—an event synonymous with the later growth of the steel industry, vital to this community’s ethnic character.

Wetherill contributed much to the South Bethlehem community, beyond being the first to capitalize upon this opportune location which would become a future industrial hub.

In addition to this important contribution, Wetherill was a vigilant patriot. He organized among Bethlehem residents, a mounted guard in the summer of 1861, for three years serving the Union during the Civil War. Wetherill enlisted as Captain of H Company, 108th Pennsylvania Regiment on Sept. 25, 1861 for a 3-year term. He was promoted to Major of the 108th on October 10, 1861, and was later discharged on Oct. 1, 1864 for expiration of term with the rank of Major. 

On March 13, 1865, he received the rank of brevet Lieutenant Colonel. These brevets were common as the war wound down and afterwards.

(Source: Samuel Bates History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, Vol. III, pp. 910, 936)

— W. Christian Carson

Afterword

On September 23, 2003, South Bethlehem Historical Society dedicated an official state marker sponsored by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission which reads: "Samuel Wetherill (1821- 1890): Chemist, industrialist and Civil War officer. In 1852 he developed a process for extracting white zinc oxide directly from zinc ore. In 1853 he founded the Lehigh Zinc Co., with a plant just east of here, pioneering the manufacture of zinc spelter and sheet."

Our Newsletter

Southern Exposure is the quarterly newsletter of the S.B.H.S. and is sent to all members. Click above to view a sample recent edition.

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A.W. Leh: South Bethlehem Architect - New World Rising

A.W. Leh (1848-1918)
Architect, Civil War Soldier

Albert Wolfring Leh, later known to citizens of the Bethlehems and beyond as A.W. Leh—or Captain Leh, in deference to his Civil War service— was born September 17, 1848 on his father’s Williams Township farm, near Easton, Pa. He might have become apprenticed to a tradesman, or even attended college, if that combination of patriotism and a spirit of adventure known as “war fever” had not seized him in the crucial autumn of 1864.

E.P. Wilbur Trust Company, 1910

On September 8, just shy of his sixteenth birthday, Leh enlisted in the Union Army. He signed up for the 198th Pennsylvania Volunteer

Infantry, the sixth regiment recruited under the auspices of the Union League of Philadelphia, and was mustered into service at that city on September 15, as part of Company “C.” Leh’s youthful military service marked the beginning of his lifelong involvement in civic and veterans’ affairs.

From 1880 through 1918, Leh’s 38-year career as architect included some of the most significant academic, commercial, ecclesiastical and residential structures in Bethlehem and elsewhere in the region.

—excerpt from A Living Legacy:
 Architecture of A.W. Leh

A few of Leh’s architectural designs include Moravian College and Theological Seminary, Broughal Middle School, First Reformed Church, E.P. Wilbur Trust Co., Municipal Market, and Lipps & Sutton Silk Mill.

On The Bookshelf

A.W. Leh Book
An Award Winner

Its been a stellar year for SBHS Southern Exposure newsletter editor, Kenneth F. Raniere. In May 2010, Ken was one of six artists honored by the City of Allentown with its Arts Ovation Award. The Literary Excellence Award was given for his book, A Living Legacy: The Architecture of A.W. Leh (2009, Moon Trail Books, $125).

Later this May, A Living Legacy was awarded the 2010 bronze medal—an “IPPY”—for best regional (Mid-Atlantic) non-fiction book by the Independent Publishers Awards. The book now proudly carries a bronze sticker on the cover. Ken was one of 60 winning medalists out of more than 700 regional entries. Books were judged alongside others from their region on the basis of quality and regional significance.

A Living Legacy is the first documented account of the architectural career of South Bethlehem's own Albert Wolfring Leh (1848-1918). Copies of the book are available at the Moravian Book Shop, at the Lehigh University Book Store over the Christmas holiday, or through South Bethlehem Historical Society. Purchase made through the Society are tax-exempt and help benefit programs.

Click here to order.

Images of America:
South Bethlehem

Just in time for the SBHS 25th Anniversary, the long-awaited publication,  Images of America—South Bethlehem, (2010, Arcadia Publishing, $21.99) is available at the Moravian Bookshop, Barnes & Noble,  and Amazon.com.

In late fall of 2009, authors Kenneth F. Raniere and Karen M. Samuels selected 200 out of 500 images, and compiled the book in less than two months to meet the publication deadline for 2010.

Click here to order