Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 14A
> FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Sunday, August 26,2001
Book examines long
history of orphanage
By Alton Bridges
Staff Writer
Title: Beloved Bethesda:
A History of George White
field’s Home for Boys, 1740-
2000
Author: Edward J. Cash
in
Publisher: Mercer Uni
versity Press
When I started reading
this book, I knew very little
about the history of Be
thesda, the orphanage that
George Whitefield started in
early Savannah.
I found the book easy to
read and very well written.
Cashin not only describes
the problems with starting
an orphanage, but also the
dreams and energy of one of
America’s greatest clergy.
Whitefield, “The Great
Itinerant,” along with the
Wesley Brothers, Charles
and John, changed the reli
gious character of colonial
America more than any of
his contemporaries.
Whitefield came to Tybee
Island on May 8, 1738 with
the idea of caring for or
phaned children.
In what is today Sa
vannah, he built his orphan
age called “Beloved Be
thesda.”
“He embarked on that
mission with all the consid
erable talent and zeal at his
command.
“Sure of himself and con
fident that he was doing the
will of Providence, he
stirred controversy wherever
he went, first in Georgia,
then throughout the col
onies.”
On his “progresses,” as
he called his travels along
the eastern seaboard into
New England, Whitefield
was the first to preach out
doors and extemporaneously,
which annoyed many of the
traditional clergy and thrilled
the multitudes.
“His listeners found it
enormously comforting to
learn from his that the emo
tion stirred by his preaching
was in fact the very saving
election of God.
“The itinerant spoke
about Bethesda in England,
Scotland, Wales and every
where he collected money
! ' V r V S
' '■ ™"" ■•’’T’”. w?" ™ : . l M}MwHWW|M|HhBWM
?. • <X’ -; ;. -y >1
-x. S-'
Wk®«MßHKp*i’ k'®p'
”'iw
. -BlBFk
y Mb
.gdH B II ■
When the name is David Denton, it’s:
• Experience
• Commitment to Community
• Neighbor to neighbor banking
442 Canton Road
Cumming, GA 30040
me 678-454-2320 £
for the orphan home; as a
result, Bethesda became one
of the most famous places in
all of Colonial America.”
Jonathan Edwards of
Massachusetts who listened
to Whitefield preach helped
initiate the Great Awak
ening.
Whitefield preached what
the old Puritan ministers
stressed, the necessity of a
personal conversion, or
being born again, and “once
saved, always saved.”
During his first trip to
New England, “Whitefield
received so many gifts for
the orphan house that he
purchased a sloop to convey
them to Savannah.
Benjamin Franklin heard
Whitefield preach and print
ed his sermons, then became
an early financial contributor
to the school.
From the earli
est days, children
at Bethesda
learnedemploy
able skills, such
as carperenters,
blacksmiths, tai
lors and bricklay
ers, who were
placed with arti
sans or business
people when
they were ready.
99
The book is also an
excellent history of early
Georgia because Bethesda
possibly sustained Georgia
during the dark years of
1740-42, when Spanish in
vaders threatened the infant
colony and many Georgians
fled to the safety of South
Carolina.
The success of Bethesda
included the efforts of such
early Georgians as James
Habersham, Francis Harris,
and Jonathan Bryan.
Bethesda alumni proudly
helped establish the Union
Society that in time took
over the custodianship of the
home.
Whitefield wanted to
transform the home into one
of America’s first colleges,
but refused to allow a minis
ter from the Church of
England to lead the school.
Whitefield died before
the school could be estab
lished or Georgia might have
become the home of one of
the earliest colonial schools,
such as Harvard or Prince
ton.
From the earliest days,
children at Bethesda learned
employable skills, such as
carpenters, blacksmiths, tai
lors and bricklayers, who
were placed with artisans or
business people when they
were teady.
This provided early
Georgia with skilled work
ers.
The leading Georgians in
the Revolutionary War
played an important role in
the success of Bethesda.
Almost every leading
member of the legislature,
court and executive branch
helped Bethesda at one time.
Soon after the end of the
revolution, Bethesda closed
and much of the property
was sold, but the failure of
Bethesda did not make the
need for an orphanage go
away.
Again, members of the
Savannah community came
to the rescue and revived
Bethesda.
Whitefield’s “Beloved
Bethesda” has seen its gradu
ates take their places in lead
ership positions throughout
the state, and Savannah’s
residents have sustained the
institution.
In that respect, the story
of Bethesda is also a history
of Savannah and of Georgia.
Graduates of the Bethesda
Home for Boys are found all
over Georgia.
■ Naturally Autumn
This fall escape to the North Georgia
State Park Lodges, the ideal destinations
for great fall getaways. How about...
hiking, biking, fishing, boating,
interpretive programs, special events...
or just plain relaxing. Charming mountain
lodges, cottages, camping, full-service
restaurants and all the wonders of nature
at a price that's naturally affordable.
Georgia
Lodges
IVhtn you ntti to escape. we're the place
• THELODGE AT REDTOPMOUMTAIN
_ _ -»’: -i-'iTTr---■ - ■• :.
ocjdada/
\2yCo, <ytecupezatio/i!
Diamond Peel Microdermabrasion
Botox Injection
Collagen and Demalogen Injection
Also Available:
Liposuction
Spider Vein Treatment
Laser Hair Removal
Georgia
Dermatology
y CZenter
•
1400 Baptist Medical Center Drive, Suite 210
Cumming, Georgia 30041
MD ( 77 °) 781 -5077 Fax: (770) 781-3915
< *1- la
z* •tear-' fl ■. tfg I MjEy W Href f
x \. ' W W- nNHBKaKt
■Kt
"lIHHi/ jit a i
I Wh&to
AHtfforif of
How for fy™,
1 ■■ ■ 1 • .
They are in the state leg
islature, on corporate
boards, as trustees of univer
sities and charitable institu
tions.
They hold elective office,
render valuable service to
their communities and are
exemplars of virtuous man
hood.
Few Georgians are aware
of the ways Bethesda affect
ed the economic and social
development and history of
the state.