Birdsboro-area residents interested in local history are invited to attend a meeting of the Birdsboro Heritage Club. The group meets on the first Saturday of the month at 9 a.m. at the Birdsboro Community Memorial Center (BCMC). The next scheduled meeting will be on Aug. 5, and the topic of discussion will be the Bird Mansion.

The group was founded by BCMC board president Todd Peterson, who established a "Birdsboro of Yesterday" Facebook page several years ago where he and local residents share historical photos and videos from the area.

"We (meet monthly) to discuss the history of our town," Peterson explained. "We choose a topic, and then I present something at the meeting. We have been getting about 10 to 12 people attending."

Past meeting topics have included "The Great 1927 Birdsboro Post Office Robbery," the schools of Birdsboro and the Birdsboro trolley, which once operated along a 7-mile stretch on what is now Route 724.

In addition to holding meetings, the club has gathered photos and other memorabilia which are housed at the BCMC. "We have a Heritage Room at BCMC where we display historical items," said Peterson. "The Heritage Room at the center is open during regular business hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the week. Anyone can stop in and view it."

At the upcoming meeting, attendees will learn about the Bird Mansion, which was built by iron forger William Bird. It was completed in 1751.

According to a history of the building posted at http://www.facebook.com/birdsboroofyesterday, when William Bird died in 1761, his iron work company was passed on to his son, Mark Bird, who later doubled the size of the two-and-a-half-story brownstone mansion. In 1796, the mansion was sold to Matthew Brooke and his wife, Elizabeth, who purchased the Birdsboro Iron Works from the Bird family.

In the early part of the 20th century, a group of local businesspeople saw the need to establish a place where local youths could gather for recreational activities. In 1921, the E&G Brooke Land Company deeded the Bird Mansion for the sum of $1 to the BCMC and the Birdsboro YMCA. During the 1960s, the YMCA was disbanded, and the community, along with help from the United Way, was successful in keeping the BCMC open. Today, the center continues to offer a variety of programming for people of all ages.

"I love history and I love Birdsboro. I was born and raised here," Peterson said, noting that years ago, the borough of Birdsboro was divided into geographical sections, which included Texas, a small group of houses in south Birdsboro. "I grew up in south Birdsboro (Texas) on Bird Street, and my father was the 'Texas Clipper' barber."

He added that the goal of the Birdsboro Heritage Club is to preserve the history of the area. "(I want to keep) our town's history alive and well," he said. "It is our past, and if we don't preserve it and share it, it will fade away."

The Birdsboro Community Memorial Center is located at 210 E. Main St., Birdsboro. For more information, visit http://www.bcmcbirdsboro.com/birdsboro-heritage-club or the aforementioned Facebook page.