Directions:

From the light in Millheim [Main and Plum Stret] travel east on Main Street [Route 45] 1.4 miles. Turn left on Rachels Way in Aaaronsburg. Go one block to Plum Street. Cemetery is on the right at intersection.

History:

In 1789 Aaron Levy appointed Jacob Stover and Michael Motz as trustees for a piece of land to build a church, school and cemetery.

Through the efforts of Rev. Christian Espich in 1793, a forty-six by thirty-six feet log church was built and the cornerstone was laid May 1, 1794. In 1800 the famous Rev. Ludwig Albrech Wilhelm Ilgen, from Germany, came to serve the church. The old church was torn down in 1852 and a brick structure was built. On October 23, 1949, this was the site of the "Issue of an Ideal--Living Above Prejudice"--better know as the Aaronsburg Story. More than 30,000 people gathered in Aaronsburg to recognize the belief of Aaron Levy, a Jew, that men should be free to worship according to his own fath. Governor James Duff, a movie star, Cornell Wilde, and many other dignitaries mingled among the thousands of people that day to show equality of man. On April 21, 1858 the Salem Luthern Church was struck by lightening and burned to the ground. A new church was constructed which serves the congregation today.

The cemetery is located on two sides of the church. It is believed that during the reconstruction of the new churches , the buildind may have interfered with the graves next to the church. Today, because of age, many of the tombstones are unreadable.

Sources:

• Spangler Book #75-1 pages 18-39

*The Cemeteries of Haines Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania printed by Centre County Genealogical Society (CCGS) State College, PA published 2007 pages 7-27