This property has been
placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior
———————
Union Canal Milestone
A gift to honor the . . . — — Map (db m39322) HM
On his first visit to America
1682 - 1684
came farthest north
on Schuylkill River
fifty miles up
from the Falls of Schuylkill
to or near the mouth of Monocacy Creek
three fourth of a mile
south-[direction erased] of this marker . . . — — Map (db m25202) HM
This tablet is in commemoration of the services of Revolutionary War soldiers buried in Hain's Church (St. John's Reformed) Cemetery at Wernersville, Pa. This tablet is dedicated in grateful recognition of their patriotism and valor.
[Honor . . . — — Map (db m39299) WM
Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and one of
America's most noted authors, Updike lived
here until age thirteen. He was inspired
by his mother, an amateur writer, and his
childhood surroundings, which he included
in many works over his 50-year . . . — — Map (db m242030) HM
Berks County authorized construction of the Dauberville Bridge, built on this site in 1908. This was one of the earliest examples of concrete bridge construction in Pennsylvania. As constructed, the arches, each spanning seventy-five feet, the four . . . — — Map (db m161050) HM
President Lincoln’s great-great grand-father Mordecai purchased Andrew Robeson’s land and built the stone house that stands about 1¼ miles south of here in 1733. Mordecai Lincoln served as Justice of the Peace of Philadelphia County from 1733 to . . . — — Map (db m296062) HM
Birth of Berks County
Settlement began with the Lenni-Lenape of the Delaware Nation. In 1681 William Penn founded Pennsylvania and in 1748 his sons Thomas and Richard established Readingtown. It became the county seat when Berks County was . . . — — Map (db m160558) HM
Pioneering editor and publisher who issued first edition of Pittsburgh Gazette, 1786. First newspaper west of Alleghenies, it became the Post-Gazette, 1927. A Berks County native, he was active in Western Pennsylvania's civic affairs; home and print . . . — — Map (db m42024) HM
A Wayside Inn
The first innkeepers on the White Horse tract were Swedish settler Marcus Huling and his wife, Margareta, a daughter of Mouns and Ingeborg Jones, the area's earliest European settlers. The Hulings' inn was established in the . . . — — Map (db m160503) HM
Laid out 1748 by direction of Thomas Penn. Seat of Berks County since 1752. Incorporated borough, 1783. Soon became, and has remained, center of the Pennsylvania-Dutch area. An old and progressive industrial community. — — Map (db m161067) HM
Member of the Continental Congress, a Revolutionary soldier, first Pennsylvania governor, 1790-99, lived at his estate Angelica from 1774 to 1794. The Berks County Farm and Home now occupies the site. — — Map (db m84488) HM
Governor of Pennsylvania, 1835-1839, lies buried in this cemetery. Born, 1780, in Berks County; died, 1869, at Carlisle. He was noted for having put into practical operation the law of 1834, which established the public school system. — — Map (db m84038) HM
Railroads
Railroads came early to the Lehigh Valley for only one reason: anthracite coal. For iron to be smelted productively in the modern furnaces of the 1840s on, enormous amounts of coal needed to be brought to the furnaces. The ore . . . — — Map (db m252229) HM
Barns in this area, with their distinctive decorations, are widely admired. Nowhere else can you find as many fine barns of the type known as "Pennsylvania standard" barns. Their signature features are symmetrical rooflines and a forebay that . . . — — Map (db m252166) HM
William Penn's 1681 charter from King Charles II of England authorized Penn to create counties and towns or townships in Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, Bucks, and Chester, all created in 1682, were the first three counties. If you were standing on . . . — — Map (db m252211) HM
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Creek discovered by Squire Boone and John McKinney, 1778. District includes one of oldest mills in Ky., built before 1792 by Jonathan Essery. Mill operated until 1900 when converted to resort; . . . — — Map (db m204283) HM
The Port of Reading was one of a number of major inland port towns located along the navigable waterways in Pennsylvania. It was at Reading that the Union Canal joined with the Schuylkill Navigation System. The Union Canal extended along the . . . — — Map (db m84491) HM
Philip Gunckel, along with three other men, led a group of settlers from Berks County, Pennsylvania to Ohio and founded Germantown in 1804. In 1814 he platted out 32 acres. The historic buildings and unique alley system in the eight and one half . . . — — Map (db m229192) HM
Andreas Gerberich arrived at port of Philadelphia from the parish of Michelreith, Lower Franconia, Bavaria, October 1, 1754. Settling near his brothers in Tulpehocken Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania, Andreas married Barbara Babb in 1758. . . . — — Map (db m262032) HM
Lenni Lenape: The Original People
Thousands of years before the first Europeans arrived in Northern America. North American Indians known as Lenni Lenape occupied parts of New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania, including Reading and Berks . . . — — Map (db m161109) HM
The First Settlers
The Lenni-Lenape, or "original people", were the first to inhabit the banks of Ganshowahanna, or "falling waters", their name for the Schuylkill River. The Lenni-Lenapes in this area were members of the peaceful tribes . . . — — Map (db m161131) HM
Situated about a mile up this footpath is Governor Dick. There stands a monolithic observation tower of reinforced concrete and steel. Fifteen feet in diameter and sixty-six feet high. From it is visible a wondrous view of the picturesque Mt. . . . — — Map (db m286492) HM
Oldest Documented House in Berks County
Mans Jonasson (1663-1727) was descended from Swedes who settled in present day Philadelphia, along with the lower Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers, in 1638. Later known as Mouns Jones he was the first . . . — — Map (db m160529) HM
At one time there were thirty-seven covered bridges throughout Berks County. Today the Wertz's covered Red Bridge is one of only five that remain. It was built in 1867 by Amandas Knerr for $7,450.
The "Red” Bridge is the longest single span . . . — — Map (db m208711) HM
Settling the Valley
Colonial authorities encouraged Protestant immigrants to move to the Valley of Virginia starting in the 1720s and 1730s. Over the next decades, mostly Ulster Scot, German, English, and Virginian settlers established . . . — — Map (db m298905) HM
A legend in his own lifetime, Daniel Boone was an explorer and hunter whose exploits made him one of the most famous frontiersmen in American history. One of 11 children raised in a Quaker household, he was born on November 2, 1734, in Berks County . . . — — Map (db m161763) HM
Who was Daniel Boone?
Many picture Daniel Boone as a famous Kentucky pioneer and hunter. While this was certainly true, Boone participated in many other ventures throughout his long life. He was a blacksmith, land surveyor, business . . . — — Map (db m169496) HM
Martin Kaercher Sr. from Germany purchased 250 acres of land called "Hamburg" in 1772. Its natural wonders made it an ideal area for agriculture and farming. Because of this attribute, "milling" is a prevalent theme in the region's history, . . . — — Map (db m138471) HM
Thin black lines indicate changes in relevance. Between each pair of lines entries are ordered geographically but all have the same relevance.
* Inflectional forms of words are their plurals, singulars, and possessives as well as gramatical tenses and similar variations.
