In my online quest to learn more about silk producation in colonial Georgia, I stumbled onto the website of a small museum, part of the Salzburger Society.
I knew nothing about this small colony of Germans who emigrated from Salzburg because of religious prosecution in the early 1700's. Salzburg was Catholic, and this group of people were Protestants.
With the support of George II of England they emigrated when Oglethorpe was looking for people to come to the new colony of Georgia. The original colony did not do well as it was too far from a place to resupply; it was an eight mile hike to the Scottish settlement of Abercorn. George II was happy with this group of pious, hardworking and non slave holding Germans, and granted them an area to resettle on the bluffs over the Savannah River, north of Savannah.
They built a beautiful church from Georgia clay called the Jerusalem Lutheran Church. Among other pursuits, according to this site indicated that widows and orphans operated the first silk filature in Georgia.
It was about an hour drive from my home in Ebenezer GA, in Effingham County. We were received by Patsy, the curator, who gave us a personalized tour.
A "sideways" stitching sewing machine
An Irish spinning wheel...interesting...
I knew nothing about this small colony of Germans who emigrated from Salzburg because of religious prosecution in the early 1700's. Salzburg was Catholic, and this group of people were Protestants.
With the support of George II of England they emigrated when Oglethorpe was looking for people to come to the new colony of Georgia. The original colony did not do well as it was too far from a place to resupply; it was an eight mile hike to the Scottish settlement of Abercorn. George II was happy with this group of pious, hardworking and non slave holding Germans, and granted them an area to resettle on the bluffs over the Savannah River, north of Savannah.
They built a beautiful church from Georgia clay called the Jerusalem Lutheran Church. Among other pursuits, according to this site indicated that widows and orphans operated the first silk filature in Georgia.
It was about an hour drive from my home in Ebenezer GA, in Effingham County. We were received by Patsy, the curator, who gave us a personalized tour.
A "sideways" stitching sewing machine
An Irish spinning wheel...interesting...
