Kutztown Area Historical Society

06/01/2026

The 7 November 1918 issue of The Kutztown Patriot included this little item on its back page. Eighty oak trees planted at the Kutztown Park? The park was smaller back then than it is now, so they must've been planted close together.

How lucky our town is to have such a magnificent park that has been revered for well over 100 years.

The next time you're in the Kutztown Park, take a gander at the trees. There are several large oaks that surely must've been planted as part of this enterprise. And, unfortunately, some of the trees that were recently removed due to disease or rot must also have been part of this massive planting.

Any enterprising soul out there want to count how many large oak trees are still standing in the Kutztown Park? If so, please post your findings in the comments.

05/13/2026

For our 50th anniversary party, we made this short video about the 1892 Public School Building:

Short video showing renovations done to the Historical Society's 1892 Public Schoolhouse since purchased in 1979.

05/12/2026

With Lehigh Valley Passport to History – We just made it onto their weekly engagement list by being one of their top engagers! 🎉

05/07/2026

The forerunner of Kutztown University, the Keystone State Normal School (KSNS) actually published its 1891 final exam in the June 6, 1891 issue of the local newspaper, The Kutztown Patriot. The exam, of course, had already been given, so no students were able to take advantage of the publication. The exam is an interesting look at what was taught in the past to EVERY student. Imagine all Kutztown University students having to translate Latin and Greek? Or prove their penmanship skills?

The tool used to download the text from the 1891 newspaper could not accurately translate the Algebraic formulas, so those, alas, have been omitted from this post.

See how many of these questions you can answer!

What was on the final exam for Keystone State Normal School (forerunner of Kutztown University) students in 1891?

05/03/2026

04/24/2026

https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/harings-house-works-from-the-collection-of-kermit-oswald?cmp=msofb&fbclid=IwY2xjawRXoQdleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETF0cFlsU1I0anF6SFVybWU5c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHjeb9ZEtbmRpROkr-hDchI8jT-Py37VRAjuU4WT0v20uK8khu7h4bBQesNEK_aem_mhhmJfQrRGjPmtkUYvOqSw

Find out more about the Sotheby's Haring’s House: Works From the Collection of Kermit Oswald sales, including all auction times, lots and locations.

04/20/2026

We got a nice write up from Antiques and Auction News.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17UirtoEof/

Lewis DeTurk (1862-1933) Kutztown Folk Carver Extraordinaire By Karl Pass - March 27, 2026 For those with an interest in American folk art, in particular folk carvings, you may be surprised in a unique collection of wood carvings at the Kutztown Area Historical Society. Lewis DeTurk (1862-1933) was....

04/19/2026

Check our latest blog post:

Bower's is a pleasant village in the southern part of the township, on a branch of the Saucony. It is a station on the East Pennsylvania Railroad, with about two hundred inhabitants, a church, and a number of very fine residences. The place was named after Jonas Bower, the owner of the farm on which