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Did George Whitefield start an orphanage?
Whitefield founded Bethesda Orphan House and Academy in 1740, which is known as the oldest child care institution in the United States.
Where did George Whitefield establish an orphanage for boys?
Bethesda
Founded in 1740 by Rev. George Whitefield, Bethesda was visited by many of the country’s founding fathers, and found one of its earliest supporters in Benjamin Franklin. In 1900, Bethesda was re-named the Bethesda Home for Boys.
Who built the first orphanage in Georgia?
evangelist George Whitefield
It was founded in 1740 as an orphanage by evangelist George Whitefield, in the 18th century on his 500 acre (1,600 m²) land grant about 10 miles (16 km) south of Savannah, in the newly founded colony of Georgia.
Who opened the first orphanage?
Orphanages were also set up in the United States from the early 19th century; for example, in 1806, the first private orphanage in New York (the Orphan Asylum Society, now Graham Windham) was co-founded by Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, widow of Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.
What did George Whitefield call his orphanage in Georgia?
When evangelist George Whitefield was only 25, he led the way with the establishment of an orphanage in the newly-founded colony of Georgia. Whitefield called the orphanage Bethesda, which means “House of Mercy ,” for he hoped many acts of mercy would be shown there.
Where did George Whitefield build the Spa Fields Chapel?
One was erected in London— Spa Fields Chapel. In 1739, Whitefield returned to England to raise funds to establish the Bethesda Orphanage, now the Bethesda Academy. It is the oldest extant charity in North America. Whitefield’s endeavor to build an orphanage in Georgia was central to his preaching.
How long did George Whitefield stay in Georgia?
Whitefield eventually made it to Georgia but stayed for only three months. When he returned to London, he found many churches closed to his unconventional methods. He then experimented with outdoor, extemporaneous preaching, where no document or wooden pulpit stood between him and his audience.
Where did George Whitefield preach most of his time?
He preached nearly every day for months to large crowds of sometimes several thousand people as he traveled throughout the colonies, especially New England. His journey on horseback from New York City to Charleston, South Carolina, was at that time the longest in North America by a white man.