A thought we constantly discussed while exploring this neglected place was the potential it contained. Right at the sharp bend following this dam, the velocity of the flow slows and a pool that looked ideal for recreation. We constantly thought about what this area would look like if cleaned up and the paths made slightly less treacherous. Perhaps if done it would become a popular spot for the community; a way for the people of Easton to get acquainted with their backyard Bushkill Creek. Looking around this area and letting our imaginations run, we could see this place rid of a plethora or litter and enjoyed by people who have missed out on bonding with the Bushkill.

In addition to our return visit to the site, we also looked into some history of the property. Joan Steiner’s The Bushkill Creek gave us some great information on the place. This source informed us that the Butz family had flour, grist, planing, and saw mills which they began to come into ownership of in 1800. They lived along the creek and also managed two large farms in Forks. After the death of Christian Butz in 1821 the property became part of the Butz’s estate and was passed on to his son. The property continued to pass through the hands of family members and in 1839 Captain Daniel Butz and his brother Michael Butz decided begin a woolen manufacturing business that would include a fulling mill, dye and drying houses, and power looms. After considerable losses they abandoned the venture and converted the mill to a gristmill. In 1861 the entire gristmill burned as well as the adjoining frame plaster mill. They rebuilt the grist mill and in early 1865 it was noted that business was booming. Joan Steiner states that, “The Butz family’s holdings were an illustration of a merchant milling operation expanding to include other businesses, in this case all located on the neck of land created where the Bushkill made its first turn to the north” (1996).

Besides discussing the history and potential future of this site, we also came upon a thread around which we would like to center our story. As mentioned in the earlier progress report, we came across tons of remnants of infrastructure in the creek. Broken chunks of concrete, innumerable bricks with logos carved into them, etc. were all apparent during our first visit. During the most recent visit, we discovered more of the aforementioned things, but we also came across a fallen piece of concrete and metal which may have once held up a park bench, even more consumer waste of all kinds, a large manhole cover, and even a traffic-infrastructure “graveyard.” We climbed up the bank right after the elbow of the creek to the backside of the public works facility and discovered piles of old traffic lights and street signs. They looked as if they hadn’t been touched for months, if not years.

After seeing the prevalence of nature taking over broken pieces of forgotten infrastructure, a theme clicked in all of our minds while we were marveling at the heaps of rusting street signs: this place is a constant battle between neglected public infrastructure and the natural world. Right near the dam, moss, lichens, water, and time have eroded bricks and dismantled structures. Behind the public works building, useful structures of past times have been left to the elements. Overwhelming evidence of the presence of homeless people who have also been neglected by the infrastructure of society litters the embankment right where we climbed down. Food wrappers, aerosol cans, beer bottles, even a few bent spoons and needles represent the population who, like the bricks in the creek, have lost their role in modern society. It’s also noteworthy to mention that the only “gate” that we have to go around to slide down to this spot is yet another piece of road-infrastructure: a guard rail. Publicly provided infrastructure also prevents the public from seeing this part of the creek from the road and sidewalk along Pearl Street. The huge fence with vines growing on it makes this battleground invisible to passersby.

We’re sure that more visits to Butz Mill will reveal even more dichotomies between public infrastructure and nature and that is what we wish to highlight in this story.