Knowledge in Motion: Pietist Perspectives on Climate and the Environment in the Salzburger Settlement of Ebenezer, Georgia

While most studies in climate history focus on long-term climatic change and its effects on society, this article emphasises the geographical contexts that shaped knowledge about climate and the environment. More specifically, it explores practices and spaces of knowledge production in the early modern period through the lens of the Pietist pastors of the Salzburger settlement in Ebenezer, Georgia. It argues that the overly optimistic view of Georgia’s climate among contemporary climatologists significantly influenced the establishment of Ebenezer and led to initial disappointment among the settlers due to unexpected agricultural challenges. However, as the Salzburgers adapted their practices based on experience, a more profound interest in climate emerged. Driven by their religious convictions, the pastors engaged in various practices of knowledge production, illustrating the interplay between individual curiosity, local knowledge markets, and a global scientific discourse. This study seeks to contribute to the fields of climate and environmental history as well as the history of knowledge, highlighting the mobility of climate knowledge across geographical and temporal boundaries.