FALL 2023
www.westendallentown.com
Volume 9, Number 3
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See Pages 8 & 9
RON’S RAMBLINGS
A History of Possibly the Oldest House in the West End The West End has been part of Allentown for over 100 years. The 11th Ward was annexed in 1900, but didn’t experience much housing growth until the mid-twenties. The 17th Ward became part of the city in 1924 and the 18th Ward joined shortly thereafter. The housing boom in these areas did not really begin until after World War II. Compared to Center City, where many homes go back to the 1800’s, and compared to the South and the East sides of the city — which were already partially developed before becoming part of Allentown — homes in the West End are among the newest in the city. However, this area was originally part of South Whitehall Township, and was primarily rural, with many farms and open spaces. While those farms are now gone, a small number of what had been farm homes still exist; some go back to the early to mid-Nineteenth Century, thus predating most West End homes by 70 to 90 years. One of those homes at 620 N. 25th St., may possibly be the oldest
PHOTOS COURTESY OF RON EPSTEIN
By Ron Epstein
in the West End. One of its owners was the late State Representative Kurt Zwikl, who researched the history of the house, including deed records. With the help of architect Ben Walbert, he looked at every piece of the home’s building materials to determine its approximate age, since apparently there are no records of the actual construction date. IN THIS ISSUE 1 Ron’s Ramblings 2 WEL Award 3 Focus on the Arts 8 World of Food Festival
Zwikl found a map published in 1862 that references the house. After checking the types of screws used (before 1846, the tips of wood screws were flat, not pointed as they are today), the color of the paint and other aspects of the building material, he concluded that the house was built at least as far back as the 1850s, although there are other issues about the 9 Thank You to our Sponsors 10 Art in the Park 11 New Community Concerts 11 Students of Note
property that led him to believe that it may have been built as far back as the 1830s. One of the first families, if not the very first to live on the property, was that of Joseph Reichard, who lived there from 1855 until 1901. At the time, the home had a red brick front which (continued on page 2)
12 St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital 14 Liz & Tyler 15 Schlossberg Report 15 Where Is It? FALL 2023 WEST END LIVING
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