Published December 21. 2021 12:38PM
Nearly two months after its historic walk in Catasauqua Borough, Lehigh Township Rails to Trails held a similar walk Nov. 14 in Northampton Borough. A group of 30 to 40 participants met 1 p.m. outside Atlas Cement Company Memorial Museum to begin the walk. The group saw several sites in the borough, including the Roxy Theatre, the former municipal building, the Block House, Siegfried Railroad Station and Simcoe Beverage.
Other buildings highlighted on the walk included The Gin Mill and Grille, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4714 and Northampton Diner and Family Restaurant.
The Roxy is on the Lehigh Township Rails to Trails' historic walk Nov. 14 in Northampton Borough. Harry Hartman opened this 1,000-seat iteration of the Lyric Theatre Feb. 1, 1921. Before then, it was a smaller 350-seat theater across the street. Hartman was hit hard by the Great Depression and sold the theater in 1933. It was reopened Aug. 31 as the Roxy. The theater has operated as the Roxy since then and was acquired by current owner, Richard C. Wolfe, in 1988.
PRESS PHOTOS BY CHRISTINA SANTO This building, at 1516 Main St., was built in 1908 and used to be the home of the borough's police station, fire department and borough offices. It was turned into an apartment complex, like many historical buildings, sometime after the municipal building moved to its current address, 1401 Laubach Ave.
Here, Larry Oberly, vice president of Northampton Area Historical Society, discusses the history of the Block House, which was built in 1756 by Hugh Wilson, an early settler from Ireland. In 1984, the house was moved from its original location along the Hokendauqua Creek to a borough park.
The Siegfried Railroad Station was built in 1876 and served the Central Railroad of New Jersey until 1945. It was restored in 1976 and is now the home of the historical society. Inside, the society also operates a museum containing artifacts and documents highlighting the history of Northampton Borough, which participants were able to examine on the walk.
Joseph Simcoe started the beer-distributing business Simcoe Beverage here at 1307 Newport Ave. The business is now located at 4630 Lehigh Drive, Walnutport.
