The last few boards left at the William H. Fritz Lumber Co., Berwyn’s oldest business, will soon be used to board up the super-supportive community storefront. After having served Berwyn since 1863 — when the borough was known as Reeseville; America was embroiled in the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln lived in the White House — Fritz Lumber has been sold to Eadeh Enterprises for an as-yet undetermined redevelopment project.

“This decision has been a very long and painful process,” Vice President Howard Fritz said in a Community Matters blog post by Pattye Benson. “Wm. Fritz (Bill) is in his 87th year and wishes to retire. I am 62 and have health issues and concerns for both myself and my dear wife, Roberta. My two adult children do not have an interest or desire to continue in this business. Neither have building experience or knowledge of it, nor do they have the required management skills needed to sustain a viable and prosperous supply company.”

Fritz Lumber expects to deplete its entire inventory by Sept. 1, at which point the business will officially close.

Read more about the difficult decision to end the Fritz Lumber legacy, as well as a little of its history, in Community Matters here.