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Summer 2015
reading and learning. Although only one was significant
to her future career aspirations, both were crucial to her
college experience.
After graduating in 1930, Saul landed a position
teaching second grade in Oley, which launched her
21-year teaching career (with a few pauses in between!).
In 1932, she transferred to the Kutztown 1892 Public
School Building (now the Kutztown Historical Society
Museum), where she taught both second and sixth grade.
Subsequent years saw her rotating
between Kutztown, Greenwich, Albany
and Maxatawny, filling in wherever
there was need.
“Kids are the same – the same all
over,” Saul revealed. “You have to let
them know you’re the boss. My students
couldn’t get away with murder! But
I wasn’t as strict as other teachers;
another teacher was deadly strict. I
maintained good discipline – that was
the main thing – and loved helping
them read better. I loved teaching.”
In 1934 she paused her career to
marry her childhood sweetheart, [the
late] J. Gomer Saul (no relation).
The two had been schoolmates and
neighborhood friends since kinder-
garten, where they attended the same public school at
which she would later teach. Love blossomed, and the
two wed, but only after conducting some genealogical
research.
“My married and maiden name are the same, but we
aren’t related at all,” she laughed. “We checked back –
way back! The nice thing was, I didn’t have to fill out all
of that paperwork to change my last name.”
After her children were born, Saul left teaching to stay
home with them, but only briefly. When the Kutztown
School District’s superintendent asked her to come
back, she answered with a resounding “Yes.”
“I loved my job, although my favorite subject in
school was recess,” she joked. “I was lucky. My students
said ‘Mrs. Saul was like an angel ... another teacher was
like the devil!’”
Since Saul had to travel for work, she grew to know
the different townships as intimately as the back of her
hand, and none more so than Kutztown. Although the
town’s geography is vastly different now than it was 85
years ago, Saul still remembers Main Street’s original
landmarks. A drug store stood where the Kutztown
Tavern is located today, and there was a café on the same
side, along with a tailor, who was always eager to press
clothing.The corner across the street, which currently
hosts Dunkelberger’s Jewelry, was an A&P grocery
store. If you look closely at the side of the building,
you can still see a hint of the original
signage.The current Wells Fargo bank
was the site of the Pennsylvania House,
a hotel known for its cuisine, and
rumored to have a tunnel underneath
it that was used by the Underground
Railroad. But of all the changes, one in
particular stands out to Saul.
“There are so many pizza places!” she
exclaimed. “It seems like most of the
businesses are pizzerias.”
Even when time marches on, some
things stay the same.Then, as now,
cafés competed for student business,
promising a necessary caffeine boost in
exchange for patronage, and restaurants
offered light lunches at low prices,
appealing to undergraduates with tight
budgets.The Strand Theatre, which celebrated its cen-
tennial in 2013, enticed scholars to take a break from
their studies and watch a movie, while Crystal Cave
enticed travelers both near and far. Yet another timeless
Saul’s adored dog
Teddy during her time
at Kutztown State
Teachers College.
“You have to know
how to
laugh
.
Always
smile
,
eat well and
get lots of sleep.
Be happy.
”
– Kathryn saUl ’30