Bethabara, Rural Hall, Germanton Ramble

The Rural Hall/Germanton, NC area is a long time favorite riding spot for me. Today traffic was crazy! It seemed like there were more cars and trucks on the road today in the middle of the day than there is in the mornings when I am going to work. All in all it was a fun ride. Below are some videos from today's ride and some history of the communities I rode through.

Bethabara 

The settlement of Bethabara in what is today Winston-Salem, North Carolina, was founded on November 17, 1753 when fifteen Moravian brethren arrived after walking from Pennsylvania. The Moravians, or Unitas Fratrum (United Brethren), were German-speaking Protestants. As followers of Jan Hus, a Bohemian heretic who was burned at the stake in 1415, the Moravians are acknowledged as the first Protestants, pre-dating the Lutherans by 100 years. Bethabara became the first Moravian settlement in North Carolina. It was the beginning of a series of Moravian settlements on the 100,000-acre tract that the Moravians had purchased on the Carolina frontier.

Rural Hall, NC

TThe community's history actually can be traced to a trapper's cabin built in the 1740s. Today, that small cabin structure stands as part of a stately 18th century home in southern Rural Hall.

With growth of the community immediately after the WThe community's history actually can be traced to a trapper's cabin built in the 1740s. Today, that small cabin structure stands as part of a stately 18th century home in southern Rural Hall.

With growth of the community immediately after the War Between the States, postal demands of residents and businesses soared.  Benjamin L. Bitting, who was appointed postmaster, used his home as the post office.  Bitting's home had a wide hall that extended from the front to the back and "was wide enough to drive a wagon throunty post office was marked for "The Hall," some intended for Salem, some intended for the Bitting Hall.  That posed a dilemma for the postmaster at Salem and created the need for the community in northern Forsyth County to have a name.  To solve the problem of routing the mail, the Salem postmaster began to mark the mail to "The Rural Hall."ar Between the States, postal demands of residents and businesses soared.  Benjamin L. Bitting, who was appointed postmaster, used his home as the post office.  Bitting's home had a wide hall that extended from the front to the back and "was wide enough to drive a wagon through," according to reports from that day.

Mail coming into Forsyth County post office was marked for "The Hall," some intended for Salem, some intended for the Bitting Hall.  That posed a dilemma for the postmaster at Salem and created the need for the community in northern Forsyth County to have a name.  To solve the problem of routing the mail, the Salem postmaster began to mark the mail to "The Rural Hall."

Germanton, NC

Germanton, settled in 1790 by German immigrants, is located seven miles north of Winston-Salem, NC.

When Stokes County was taken from Surry, the old courthouse was ordered to be sold, and the proceeds were to be equally divided between Surry and Stokes and applied towards the erection of two new courthouses. The act ordered the first court to be held at the home of Gray Bynum, and all subsequent courts were to be held where the justices designated until the courthouse could be constructed. Commissioners were named to select the site and have public buildings built.

In 1790, Germantown was laid out on land deeded to the county from Michael and Henry Fry. Germantown remained the county seat until 1849, when Forsyth County was created out of Stokes County. The act establishing Forsyth County directed that the first court of Stokes after the passage of the act to be held at Germantown, at which time the justices were to determine a location for the new courthouse and jail. In 1851, Crawford was established as the county seat. In 1852, Crawford was renamed to Danbury, which as been the county seat ever since.