The Altar That Graced Holy Guardian Angels Church
When Holy Guardian Angels Parish was formally established in Hyde Park in 1929, it began with fewer than 100 [...]
Why the Hamiltonian Debate Matters to Reading and Berks County
Editor's Note: GoReadingBerks does not endorse any political party, candidate, or economic ideology. This article examines the renewed national [...]
The Building That Held a Parish – Holy Guardian Angels Combination Church and School
There was a time in Hyde Park when one building held nearly everything a parish needed. It stood along [...]
When Berks Went Poolside: The Swimming Pools of 1957
By the summer of 1957, swimming pools had become one of the clearest signs of how life in Reading [...]
College Manor Pool: The Neighborhood Pool Hampden Heights Built for Itself
In the summer heat of Reading, there was a time when a neighborhood pool was more than a place [...]
The Fourth of July in Reading and Berks County
Of all the days on the Berks County calendar, none is older than the Fourth of July — for [...]
A History of Whiskey Production in Reading and Berks County
For more than two centuries, whiskey was woven into the agricultural, industrial, and even criminal fabric of [...]
Washington Street Bridge, Reading, PA
In a city defined by railroads and industry, the Washington Street Bridge in Reading was never just a simple [...]
The Bavarian Volksfest and Beneficial Association of Reading, Pennsylvania: A History
On May 29, 1887, a group of German-speaking Catholic immigrants gathered in Reading, Pennsylvania, and did what thousands of [...]
The 113th Easter Dawn Service on Mount Penn
In the early hours of Easter morning, beneath a thick veil of fog that softened the skyline and muted [...]
The Rising Sun Athletic Association: A Hotel, a Family, and a Fastball
Before there were travel ball tournaments and elite showcases, before every kid's at-bat was streamed on a phone, there [...]
Penn Street Bridge or Penn Street Viaduct?
Reading, Pennsylvania has endured a lot over the centuries. Floods. Deindustrialization. The collective trauma of losing Pomeroy's. But lurking [...]
Why West Reading Survived — and Reading Didn’t
Stand on the Penn Avenue bridge where the Borough of West Reading meets the City of Reading, and you [...]
Lesher’s Hotel: A Lost Landmark of the Pottsville Pike
For much of the 20th century, Lesher’s Hotel stood as a well-known landmark along the Pottsville Pike in what [...]
History of the Hyde Park Bedding Company
The Hyde Park Bedding Company, a long-standing fixture of the Berks County industrial landscape, evolved from a modest machine [...]
The Latino Heritage of Reading and Berks County
Walk down Penn Street in Reading today, and you'll hear the rhythms of salsa and merengue drifting from storefronts, [...]
The Polish Ancestry of Reading and Berks County
The story of Polish Americans in Reading and Berks County begins around 1850, when the first Polish immigrants arrived [...]
Christmas Traditions in Reading and Berks County in Times Past
Berks County, Pennsylvania—with Reading as its bustling seat—has long been a stronghold of Pennsylvania Dutch (German) culture, where Christmas [...]
A Mohnton Christmas Eve
The winter of 1920 had wrapped the Governor Mifflin area in a blanket of white, and on this particular [...]
Christmas on Penn Street: When Downtown Reading Sparkled with Holiday Magic
There was a time when Christmas in Reading, Pennsylvania meant something truly magical—a sensory experience that began the moment [...]