The Reading Fire Department was officially organized on March 17, 1773, with the founding of the Rainbow Volunteer Fire Company. The Keystone Hook and Ladder Company No. 1, was organized on December 12, 1855. The company was known by various other names until February [...]
West of the Reading Hospital and Medical Center, between Seventh Avenue and Park Road, on the Wyomissing-West Reading border, stands the imposing Masonic Temple, dedicated in 1963. The square on which it is located gives little hint of the history associated with the [...]
Perched atop the old Hampden reservoir (now an athletic field) to the North and South were once two Civil War-vintage .62 bore "Bronze Napoleon" field guns. Viewed from the foot of the steep approach to Hampden Park they were formidable looking objects. Their [...]
he Penn Street Viaduct at Reading, PA is located at the foot of Penn Street. The viaduct begins at the west curb line of Second Street and extends westward a distance of 1,350 feet. When completed in 1913, the viaduct carried Penn Street [...]
For almost 40 years, Reading, Pennsylvania, had a stubborn little traffic circle in Penn Square that seemed to have a life of its own—a ring of resilience, as if defying anyone who dared question its purpose. This is the story of the traffic [...]
Rising 19 stories or 275 ft., the county courthouse is the tallest building in Reading. The courthouse, located at the northeast corner of Sixth and Court Streets, was the only skyscraper and art-deco style temple of justice in the United States when it [...]
On October 19, 1778 Mr. Hall sold the property located at the Southeast Corner of 5th & Penn Streets to Mark Bird. Mark Bird, of Birdsboro, conveyed the property to John Bishop, of Exeter. Mr. Bishop by will dated February 20, 1812, devised [...]
Aaron Albright made a startling recommendation to his employers in June 1856. He proposed building a tunnel 2,500 feet long under Alsace Hill in Muhlenberg Township. Albright was chief engineer of the Reading Water Co. The company, formed March 16, 1819, supplied water [...]
The Neversink Mountain Reservoir was built in 1936, on just over 29 acres of land, which was acquired by the city in 1865 for $890. The cost of construction, including fixing the initial leaks, was $202,000. The Reservoir is a flat spot on [...]
During the Civil War, Scott Foundry, Reading, PA, tested army and navy cannons on the slope of Neversink Mountain. Near the proving grounds was a strong run of water that originated as a spring. Miniature water wheels were constructed and placed along the [...]
