Soon as the house was destroyed the savages set fire to the barns and stables, by which all the corn, hay and cattle were destroyed.
The Indians then divided the spoils, soaked some bread in milk, made a hearty meal, and departed—all this being observed by Sister Partsch looking on from her hiding place behind a tree upon a hill near the house.
This melancholy event proved to be the delivery of the Indian converts at Gnadenhutten; for upon the first crack of the guns and seeing the flames, they sensed the cause and would have rushed to the defense of the Moravians had not a missionary advised them to the contrary. Instead they all fled to the woods, and in a few minutes, Gnadenhutten was cleared of everything worth while.
Reverend David Zeisberger, who had just arrived at Gnadenhutten from Bethlehem, hastened back to give notice of this terrible event to a body of English militia which had marched within five miles of the spot, but they did not venture to pursue the savages in the dark.
The fugitive congregation arrived safely at Bethlehem. After the French and Indians had retired, the remains of those killed on the Mahoning were carefully collected from the ruins and solemnly interred.
A broad slab of marble placed there in 1788, now marks the grave, which is situated on the hill a short distance from Lehighton, and a little north of a small hamlet which occupies the site of the ancient missionary village. The following is the inscription on the marble:
“To the memory of Gottleib and Joanna Anders, with their child, Christiana; Martin and Susanna Nitschmann, Anna Catherine Senseman, John Gattenmeyer, George Fabricius, clerk; George Schweigert and Martin Presser, who lived here at Gnadenhutten unto the Lord, and lost their lives in a surprise from Indian warriors, November the 24th, 1755.
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints—Psalms cxvi, 15.”