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History of Greater Reading, Berks County, PA
We know that history can always be a little like reading a textbook, but we think you will be surprised at all the interesting things that have made this area so special. We hope you take a minute or two to read about Greater Reading, Berks County’s and how it got its heart and soul.
The Start of a Great County
Berks County, annexed from portions of Philadelphia, Chester and Lancaster counties, was incorporated March 11, 1752. In 1752, Berks had 23 townships and about 12,000 residents. Today, the county is comprised of 75 municipalities and over 385,000 inhabitants and covers 864 square miles. The City of Reading covers 10.3 square miles and has more than 85,000 residents.Berks County became a third-class county in 1952, and is governed by three elected commissioners. Other elected officials include a treasurer, controller, prothonotary, recorder of deeds, register of wills, coroner, surveyor, board of prison inspectors, jury commissioners, sheriff, clerks of county courts, judges of county courts, and district attorney. The City of Reading has a mayor/council form of government. An elected mayor and an appointed managing director are responsible for the administrative functions; the seven part-time council members are responsible for the legislative process.
The rich soil of Berks, aided by a favorable climate and centralized Mid-Atlantic location, has contributed to a strong agrarian tradition. Today, agriculture, both in terms of food production and processing, is the county’s No. 1 industry. The outlet industry, which has its roots in Reading, remains so strong that Reading/Berks has been coined as “The Original Outlet Capital of the World.”“ Tourism, generated by the county’s heritage, arts and culture as well as shopping opportunities, injects millions of dollars annually into the local economy. The Frontier and Colonial Times
The Schuylkill River flows through the heart of the county from the northwest to the southeast, from the anthracite coal region farther north to the metropolitan area, including Philadelphia, in the southeastern corner of the state. The Lenni-Lenape Indians, part of the Delaware nation, were the first to build their fishing settlements along the river. Beavers were in abundant supply, and in 1663, Dutch explorers from New Amsterdam (now New York) set up a post to trade with the Indians for their beaver pelts.In 1681 William Penn, a Quaker leader, arrived with the charter of proprietorship granted by the King, giving him the right to sell the lands to settlers. He predicted that “The Schuylkill, 100 miles of boatable waters above the falls, was likely to become a great settlement of the ages.” The river proved to be a natural means of moving goods to the nearest seaport—Philadelphia. William Penn named his new colony in America “Penn’s Woods” or Pennsylvania.
Into this “Promised Land” came English Quakers, Welsh, Swedes, French Huguenots, Mennonites from Switzerland, Moravians from Moravia and Bohemia, Schwenkfelders from Silesia, a few Holland Dutch, and Palatinates from the upper Rhine Valley in Germany. Fleeing persecution and the desolation following Europe’s Thirty-year War, many of these new arrivals spoke German and combined they became known as the “Pennsylvania Dutch”, or more correctly, the Pennsylvania Germans. One of these early settlers from Germany was Conrad Weiser. As a young man he lived with a Mohawk Indian Tribe and learned their language and customs. These skills and the respect that the Indians held for him, led to his role as interpreter and diplomat. He negotiated many treaties with the powerful Iroquois Nation and became known as the Peacemaker. Thomas and Richard Penn, the sons of William Penn, thought so highly of him that they appointed him one of three commissioners to sell public lots in their proposed town on the road from the Tulpehocken settlement to Philadelphia.
Readingtown was laid out above “the Ford”, a point where the Schuylkill River could be easily crossed and in a natural amphitheater with the mountains in the background. Officially established in 1748 and made the county seat in 1750, it was named in honor of their father’s birthplace, Reading, England and the county was giving the name of Berks for its English equivalent, Berkshire.
The area proved to be rich in natural resources. Iron ore, limestone, and hard wood forests for making charcoal, made this an ideal location for the manufacturing of iron products. One of the early colonists was Thomas Rutter who, in 1719, founded Colebrookdale Furnace the first blast furnace in Pennsylvania also a township in Berks County. Soon other “iron plantations”, with surrounding communities of skilled workers and their families, were established, turning out stoves, cookware and iron tools. During the French and Indian War, Reading became a military base and by the time of the American Revolution, the local iron industry had a total production of iron that exceeded that of England, and was able to supply George Washington’s troops with cannons, rifles, and ammunition. When Washington won the battle of Trenton, the captured Hessian soldiers were marched to Reading and detained in a camp on the slopes of Mt. Penn. That residential area of the City continues to be known as Hessian Camp.
The Berks County homestead where the frontiersman Daniel Boone was born in 1734, is now a Pennsylvania historic site interpreting the life of the Boone family and the saga of other early settlers from the many different cultures in eighteenth-century Pennsylvania. By the 1790’s Reading’s population had grown to 2,400, mostly German-speaking citizens. Transportation was largely responsible for the prosperity with both the Schuylkill River and the construction of the Union Canal with its flat-bottomed boats providing the means for Berks County’s agricultural products to be accessible to the markets of Philadelphia. With the discovery of coal to the north and the early development of the railroad, Reading became a thriving, bustling industrial city. By 1846 its population had grown to 12,000 living in rows of red brick houses.
The Growing City
The center of Reading was known as market square, with open sheds where farmers would sell their produce and hold a yearly fair. Later the square became the center of government and commerce with the County Courthouse, banks, stores and hotels located on the site. The construction of the Reading Railroad, its lines radiating in all directions from the City, was probably the greatest single factor in the development of Berks County. Established in 1833 to transport coal, its operations grew to include coal mining, iron making, canal and sea-going transportation and shipbuilding. By 1870 it was the largest corporation in the world.With the advent of the Civil War, Berks County was again called upon to provide much of the heavy ordinance used in the conflict. The Ringgold Light Artillery of Reading, was one of the first Pennsylvania military companies to answer Lincoln’s call and arrived in Washington DC on April 18, 1861. Berks County regiments fought bravely in many of the major battles of the war, including the July 1863, battle at nearby Gettysburg.
In the fifty years following the Civil War, Reading continued to grow as an industrial city. Bicycles, wagons, hats, cigars, clocks, shoes, brass, bricks, steam engines, rope, beer and pretzels, and many other items were all manufactured in the city or the surrounding area. In 1900 Charles Duryea came to Reading to make one of the earliest automobiles. Duryea Drive on Mt. Penn still carries his name and is the site of an annual car race up to the top of the mountain.
Red brick “row homes”, side-by-side sharing an inside wall and just one-room wide, were often built by the owners of the local industry for their workers. A family would live and work in the same block scheduling their lives around the factory whistle telling them when to report to work, go home for a meal, or end the day. As the industrialist grew wealthy they began to build their own large, private homes in the “countryside” surrounding the densely populated center of the city. These were the first “suburbs” and as the trolley car lines extended further from Penn Square, the traditional heart of Reading, the city expanded. Today the Centre Park Historic District preserves the lovely Victorian architecture of these stately homes and is a unique and vital city neighborhood.
During both World War I and World War II, Berks County provided much needed manufactured goods to support the war efforts. Knitting mills became a major industry as well as the manufacture of steel products. The diversity of industry remains a hallmark of Berks County’s business environment. Products produced by local businesses include pretzels, candy, bricks, optical lenses, specialty metals, food processing and thermo-nuclear devices, to name a few. A large contributor to the economy is retail sales and the tourism industry. More than 10 million visitors annually come to Berks County, they enjoy shopping, arts, crafts, culture and all types of entertainment. With several former factory buildings and knitting mills converted to outlet stores, and the opening of Cabela’s, the World Foremost Outfitter“, first East Coast store, retail sales contribute significantly to the economy of both Berks County and the State of Pennsylvania.
Recent census data notes the increase in the Hispanic population especially in the City of Reading. This represents both a challenge and an opportunity for the area.
Berks County Today
Education, cultural and recreation activities are a major force in Berks County. There are five local colleges and universities in Berks County and 18 public school districts. The recently completed Sovereign Center and the Sovereign Performing Arts Center represent the continuing commitment to the arts and entertainment. A new venue, The Greater Reading Expo Center, allows the area to support large consumer and business tradeshows. The Reading Symphony Orchestra and the Reading Public Museum are considered among the best in the state. In addition there are a myriad of groups and organizations providing residents the opportunity to participate in, as well as attend, the entire spectrum of the arts. Each year the Berks Arts Council presents the largest jazz festival on the east coast. And Reading is home to the Reading Phillies baseball club, and the Royals Professional Hockey Club. 
The same beautiful countryside that attracted the early settlers to Berks County continues to provide opportunities to today’s residents. Hundreds of acres have been designed for recreational or preservation purposes. The Berks County Parks and Recreational Department maintains and operates several historic sites, camping and recreational facilities. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineer built and maintains the Blue Marsh Lake, a project designed to provide flood control, an enormous reservoir of drinking water, and extensive recreational opportunities. The State of Pennsylvania maintains the heavily forested, scenic hills of French Creek State Park in the midst of the ever-expanding urban environment of southeastern Berks County. And the Nolde Environmental Center and the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary provide unique educational opportunities as well as the chance to enjoy the beauty of nature. Berks County, what an illustrious past and what a wonderfully bright future.
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