The Peach Street Bridge

By Brendan Strasser

Construction on the new Peach Street bridge is complete. Peach Street, originally known as Heffner Street, was initially constructed at some point between 1862 and 1876 and was the second street in the Borough of Kutztown to cross the Saucony Creek. (A bridge had forded the Saucony along Main Street, aka the Easton Road, since at least 1755, possibly earlier.) At the time, Heffner Street provided a handy connection from the borough's industrial hub to the Krumsville Road, allowing the many farmers north of town to transport their goods to the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad depot without having to travel as far as Main Street. In that era, James S. Heffner lived at 205 Greenwich Street, across from the street's western terminus, and at the eastern end, catty-corner from the railroad depot, stood his substantial flour, feed and grain mill (currently occupied by Dewy Meadow Foods) as well as his coal and lumber yard. The original bridge, of which few photographs exist, was a narrow wooden affair barely wide enough to allow two horse-drawn carts to pass, was replaced in 1917. (See photo below). Peach Street was renamed in a later era when many streets and alleys, especially those east of the Saucony, were named after fruits -- other examples include Lime, Lemon, Orange, Cherry, and Plum, and (on the west side) Apple. The short spur running alongside Heffner's residence, connecting Greenwich Street and Bock Alley, is still officially "Heffner Alley." The bridge is situated within the Kutztown Historic District, officially designated by the Pennsylvania Historic & Museum Commission with research and documentation provided by the historical society, so the new design -- which appears very similar to the 1917 structure, right down to the light stanchions -- was required to meet historic district standards. As part of the replacement project, Berks County, which owns the bridge, was also required to do mitigation because the 1917 bridge had been declared by PennDOT to be a contributing structure within the KHD. Thus, two large interpretive panels with information about the Historic District and about Kutztown's industrial history, have been erected in the zone. One is at the train station, the other is located by borough hall.

For further information about Heffner's Mill, see A Most Agreeable Town, Volume 2, pp. 54-55, and about the two earlier Peach Street bridges, see A Most Agreeable Town, Volume 3, pages 35-38.