Johann Martin Boltzius was born in 1703 in Forst, Germany. His parents worked as weavers and accordingly earned a modest living. As the recipient of a scholarship to the University of Halle, Boltzius studied Lutheran Pietism. Following his graduation, Botlzius worked at the Latin School of the Franke, which educated orphans, with an emphasis on Protestantism.
In 1733 the school’s head assigned Boltzius minister to a group of Lutheran refugees fleeing religious persecution in their home of Salzburg, and intending to settle in the New World with financial assistance from the Georgia Trustees and the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK). The group arrived in Charles Town on March 5, 1734 and subsequently continued to Savannah. Then, Georgia founder James Oglethorpe met them in Savannah and escorted them to their new home.
In 1734, the Salzburgers numbered 100 people, 10% of Georiga’s European population. Their first settlement at Ebenezer (Hebrew for Stone of Help) proved unsuitable for the crops they planted. Boltzius appealed to Oglethorpe for permission to move. At first, Oglethorpe denied them permission, but capitulated following a heated argument. Thus, in 1936, the Salzburgers moved to a new spot along the Savannah River, New Ebenezer. In 1941, they built Jerusalem Lutheran Church. The congregation, which dates its first Sunday School at 1734, is the oldest continuously operated Lutheran church in the United States, and is a member of the ELCA today. Lutheran Church of the Ascension in Savannah also traces its roots to the Salzburgers and Boltzius, who started the church in 1741 as demand for Lutheran services in Savannah grew.
Throughout this time, Boltizius’ letters to the Trustees and the SPCK tend to administrative issues. He requested seeds, and, eventually, funds to build mills. By 1738, the Salzlburgers at Ebenezer produced crop surpluses, which they sold in Savannah. Many of the group had been agricultural workers in Salzburg, and therefore brought quite a bit of knowledge with them. Their crop successes appear to have been unique among settlements in Georgia.
At its founding, Georgia law forbade slavery. Boltzius early letters indicate that he thought slavery immoral. Francis Tannie Arnsdorff suggests that his objections may have stemmed from fear that European benefactors would cut off support if Georgia legalized slavery, or even from racism. However, he was so vocal in his opposition that the pro-slavery group, the Malcontents, wrote to the Georgia Trustees and New Ebenezer’s sponsors in Europe seeking to have Boltzius removed. Sources agree that as demand to legalize slavery in Georgia increased, Boltzius feared that standing in the way of that legalization could be dangerous. He then rationalized that the introduction of slaves constituted an opportunity to convert slaves to Christianity. Finally, he completely lost the moral high ground by owning slaves himself.
Boltzius passed away in New Ebenezer in 1765.
Sources:
- Ebel, C. (2006). Johann Martin Boltzius. In New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved Sep 29, 2020, from https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/johann-martin-boltzius-1703-1765/
- Wikipedia contributors. (2025, June 1). Johann Martin Boltzius. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04:14, July 23, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Johann_Martin_Boltzius&oldid=1293336228
- Francis Tannie Arnsdorff, “Ebenezer and the Salzburgers’ Separatist Identity in Colonial Georgia,” Armstrong Undergraduate Journal of History 3, no. 2 (April 2013).
- Jerusalem Lutheran Church. Visit Ebenezer GA Home of the Georgia Salzburger Society. (n.d.). https://govisitebenezer.com/sites/jerusalem-lutheran-church/