ABOUT RACE STREET

Moya is located in downtown Jim Thorpe on Race Street, in what is surely one of the most beautiful and historic settings in town. Just steps away from the Inn at Jim Thorpe and the other lodgings and attractions on Broadway, Race Street perfectly preserves the beauty and simplicity of the town as it appeared in the 1850's.

Race Street is named for its original purpose, a raceway that was diverted from Mauch Chunk Creek to power the turbine that drove a pre-industrial mill. The mill was destroyed in one of the many floods that ravaged the town more than a hundred years ago. The iron turbine that powered the mill was also wrecked by the flood and washed into the Lehigh Canal. During a period of drought, the turbine was located and recovered by local historians, and this amazing specimen of mid 19th-century technology can now be seen streetside outside the Mauch Chunk Museum on Broadway.

Race Street is home to the quaint and romantic "Stone Row" of hand-built townhouses whose construction dates to the 1840's. Built by hand from stone quarried from the adjacent hillside, these buildings were originally the homes of the laborers and craftsmen that occupied the town during the heyday of the mining era. Today, the stone townhouses of Race Street are today occupied by unique shops, and fine artists, as well as artisanal food and gift purveyors.

Moya is situated directly opposite from St. Mark's Episcopal Church, which is surely among the town's most amazing architectural spectacles. Dating to 1867, the church reflects both the town's humble beginnings as well as the largesse of the many millionaires made by the region's mineral wealth.

Photograph by Mary Ann Photography.