One of the glories of Pennsylvania is its history of offering refuge and sanctuary to religious nonconformists, dissenters, and visionaries of many kinds.

Among the many bands of earnest believers who accepted the invitation of William Penn to find homes in Pennsylvania were the Schwenkfelders.

On-line, one can find a more comprehensive history of this fellowship, but here I cite the concise history from the website of the Palm Schwenkfelder Church:

“Who are the Schwenkfelders?

It is impossible to describe the present day Schwenkfelders without mentioning the past.  Palm Schwenkfelder Church derives its name and its heritage from a 16th century Reformation leader named Caspar Schwenckfeld von Ossig.  Schwenckfeld was a Silesian nobleman who became involved in the Protestant Reformation soon after it began in 1517. Schwenckfeld championed the spirituality of religion, spiritual interpretation of the Bible, freedom of conscience, separation of church and state and an ecumenical church that unites all Christians. He believed that the true Christian church consists of all those who worship God in spirit and in truth, whether or not they adhere to one doctrine…”

Besieged by hostile governments and facing imprisonment and confiscation of property, the Schwenkfelders found temporary refuge in the fiefdoms of sympathetic noblemen, including Nicholas Von Zinzendorf of the Moravian fellowship.

Between 1731 and 1737, six groups of Schwenkfelder exiles arrived in Philadelphia.

The Schwenkfelder churches today all exist within 50 miles of that city.

Interestingly, the fellowship of Schwenkfelders did not organize congregations or erect church buildings until the early 20th century.

One of the three large Schwenkfelder Churches is at Palm, about 50 miles north of Philadelphia.

This postcard photograph of the new Church (1910) at Palm was made by H. Winston Fegley, the prolific postcard photographer of Reading, PA.

The postcard was published circa 1920.