The lane is first mentioned in 1456 as "bomgardische gasse" in the parish boundary charter between St. Bartholomew's and St. Catherine's churches. The adjectival form is a characteristic feature of Danzig street names derived from personal names (compare Belgardsche, Berholdsche, and Matzkausche Gasse).

Since a Baumgartsche Gasse also existed in the Jungstadt (Young Town), whose inhabitants settled in large numbers in this part of the Old Town after the destruction of their settlement in 1454, it is very likely that the street name owes its origin to one of these Jungstadt settlers.

Both the name and the extent of the lane remained remarkably constant over the centuries. After the war, it was renamed in honor of the Danzig astronomer Johannes Hevelcke (Hevelius).

History