1 01, 2024

When Reading had its own Mummers’ Day Parade

2024-01-01T14:28:33-04:00January 1st, 2024|History|0 Comments

Special contribution by Local Historian "Sharon Merolli." The following is a description of the first and only parade of the Mummers’ Association in Reading on January 1, 1908, from various news articles by the Reading Eagle and Reading Times. On a crisp and [...]

7 04, 2023

Lenape Indians of Berks County and Pennsylvania

2023-04-18T11:50:18-04:00April 7th, 2023|History, Indians|Comments Off on Lenape Indians of Berks County and Pennsylvania

In 1684, Berks County was exclusively inhabited by the Lenape Indians, who were an indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands region in the United States and Canada. The Lenape were also known as the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people. Their ancestral homeland included [...]

28 03, 2023

Repairs to Reading’s Pagoda

2023-03-28T15:09:10-04:00March 28th, 2023|History, News|Comments Off on Repairs to Reading’s Pagoda

A recent post by GoReadingBerks on Facebook sparked the interest of the public and attracted the attention of Reading City Council as to the status of repairs to Reading's Pagoda. The iconic building on Duryea Drive has been closed since the start of [...]

6 03, 2023

History of the Mineral Springs Hotel

2023-03-06T09:09:23-04:00March 6th, 2023|History, Hotels, Landmarks|Comments Off on History of the Mineral Springs Hotel

In 1815 two Reading businessmen, Charles Kessler and John Spade, erected a substantial stone factory at the lower approach to the Rosenthal or Rose Valley glen which stretches between present day Egelman’s Park and Pendora Park. The glen is formed by the depression [...]

7 02, 2023

Mount Laurel Furnace and Temple Iron Company

2023-02-07T14:59:08-04:00February 7th, 2023|History, Landmarks|Comments Off on Mount Laurel Furnace and Temple Iron Company

The first industries in Muhlenberg Township developed in Temple. The Mount Laurel Furnace for the manufacture of iron began in 1836 on Mount Laurel Road. Built in 1836 by John Bertolet, Mayberry Bertolet and Francis Palm, Mount Laurel typified the small, standard charcoal [...]

16 01, 2023

History of The Reading Public Museum

2023-01-16T16:31:23-04:00January 16th, 2023|History, Landmarks|Comments Off on History of The Reading Public Museum

In 1904, Dr. Levi Mengel, a science teacher at the Reading School District, sought permission from the district to purchase scientific and anthropological materials to aid in his vision of providing a "sensory education" to motivate his students to participate and to enrich [...]

30 12, 2022

Heiner’s Wissel on Neversink Mountain

2022-12-30T08:45:47-04:00December 30th, 2022|History, Landmarks|Comments Off on Heiner’s Wissel on Neversink Mountain

The city of Reading is bounded on the west by the Schuylkill River, on the east by Mount Penn, and on the south by Neversink Mountain. Overlooking the city on Mount Penn are two landmarks, a Japanese-style pagoda, and the William Penn Memorial [...]

5 11, 2022

History of Holy Guardian Angels, Hyde Park

2022-11-05T08:26:37-04:00November 5th, 2022|Churches, History|Comments Off on History of Holy Guardian Angels, Hyde Park

Holy Guardian Angels Roman Catholic Church, Hyde Park, was established in 1929 for a group of Italian immigrant families who settled in Temple in the early 1920s. The nearest Italian Catholic church, Holy Rosary, located in Reading was about five miles away and [...]

21 05, 2022

Civilian Conservation Corps

2022-05-21T06:38:31-04:00May 21st, 2022|History, Landmarks|Comments Off on Civilian Conservation Corps

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a public relief program for unemployed men ages 18 to 24 to provide unskilled manual labor for conservation and development of natural resources beginning in 1933. President Roosevelt promoted the CCC for youth unable to find jobs [...]

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