The preservation of the Gruber Wagon Works will continue.
At a commissioners meeting Thursday, members of the Society for the Preservation of the Gruber Wagon Works presented county officials with its annual contribution for the ongoing preservation of the historical landmark — a check for nearly $27,000.
The yellow wooden building at the Berks County Heritage Center on Red Bridge Road in Bern Township serves as one of the last examples of a fully outfitted 19th century wagon manufacturing facility.
Built in 1882 by Franklin Gruber, the wagon works evolved from a single craftsman shop into a family-operated business that employed up to 20 men who used mass-production methods to produce wagons, wheelbarrows and sleds.
Originally located along the Tulpehocken Creek in Mount Pleasant, the Army Corps of Engineers moved the building in 1976 to its present location to make way for the Blue Marsh Lake flood-control project.
In 1978, the Gruber Wagon Works was designated as a National Historical Landmark to commemorate its historic significance as an industry from a bygone era of American craftsmanship.
Barry Kauffman, executive director of the Society for the Preservation of the Gruber Wagon Works, thanked the county commissioners for their continued support in ensuring the building remains in Berks.
He reminded the board there was a time when that was not a certainty.
“When I first got involved in preserving the wagon works, there was talk that the Army Corps of Engineers were going to dismantle it and move it to some museum in New Jersey,” he recalled. “But there was a county commissioner by the name of Vernon Shaffer that was not going to let that happen.”
Kauffman said Shaffer told the Army Corps of Engineers that if they wanted to move the building they should bring a lot of buckets and shovels because he would personally burn the thing to the ground before he would allow anyone to take the wagon works from Berks.
“Well, needless to say, we know how that worked out,” he said with a chuckle.
Commissioners Chairman Christian Leinbach said, having known Shaffer before his death in 2006, that story sounds like a pretty accurate account of what happened. He commended Shaffer and previous county leaders who have supported the wagon works.
“The Gruber Wagon Works is absolutely a cornerstone of the Heritage Center and very much a part of not only Berks County history, but of American history,” he said.
Commissioners Michael Rivera and Dante Santoni Jr. thanked the society for its longtime commitment and financial support over its more than four decades of existence, noting that the site represents an important part of American history.
Also at the meeting, the commissioners unanimously passed an emergency declaration to fix a water leak at the building that houses the Berks County Youth Center and Berks County Library System in Bern Township.
The declaration will waive all requirements of procurement law related to the replacement.
Leinbach said the water leak occurred while a line was being repaired, resulting in a large amount of water being dispersed in a short period of time throughout the building. He said the incident caused significant damage.
Burst pipes were not a result of the building being kept too cold, he said, explaining that the facility was being maintained at about 72 degrees. Instead, he said, the issue was because of the location of the pipes.