Kutz's Mill Bridge
Why it's listed
Built in 1854 by the firm Bitner and Ahrens, Kutz's Mill Bridge is a covered wooden bridge carrying traffic over Sacony Creek in Greenwich Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. It uses a Burr truss design, with a span whose end post measures 93 feet, a roadway 16 feet wide, and a clearance of 11 feet. Its load rating is 20 tons. The bridge is the last surviving one of the 37 original covered bridges built in Berks County. A marble tablet above the north portal names the county commissioners of the day, John McCowan, Benjamin Kutz and Jacob Young, along with the builders, and it is the only surviving bridge in the county with such a tablet. In 1959 a steel deck and steel floor beams were added to give the structure additional support, and repairs were carried out in 1960, recorded on a brass plaque over the south portal.
Significance in brief: The nomination identifies it as the last remaining of the 37 original covered bridges in Berks County. It retains a marble tablet over its north portal naming the commissioners and builders, which the nomination says is unique among the county's bridges. The document notes it was listed as part of a thematic group of Berks County covered bridges.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 81000531, listed February 23, 1981. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | NW of Kutztown on T 798, Greenwich Township, Kutztown |
|---|---|
| County | Berks County |
| Listed | February 23, 1981 |
| Reference number | 81000531 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Architect / builder | Bitner and Ahrens (builder) |
| Architectural style | Burr truss covered bridge |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | A steel deck and steel floor beams were added in 1959, and a brass plaque on the south portal records repairs in 1960. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.53455, -75.80537 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 81000531.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6448687
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.