Berks History Center

In just over two weeks, join the BHC for our November Second Saturday Program: Remembrances of the 75th Anniversary of the D-Day Invasion, featuring historian Ed Matten. Mr. Matten will chronicle his visit to Normandy in June of 2019 by presenting two videos along with discussion. In addition, Ed will share interviews of WWII veterans, recordings from General Eisenhower, old stills, guided tours by experts of this momentous historical event, and the very moving ceremony held with President Trump and President Macron in the Colleville-sur-Mer cemetery. This program will be held in person, inside the BHC Museum Auditorium. The cost of this program is $5 for BHC members, $8 for non-members, and FREE FOR ALL VETERANS. Call 610-375-4375 to reserve your space today!

This week's #MysteryMonday object is a tiller sled, "Old Glory," currently on display in the Berks History Center Museum. In the winter of 2016, BHC Trustee Rick Polityka unearthed the history behind an early 1900s sled, or tiller, known as Old Glory, that was hidden away in the basement of the Northeast Taproom in Reading, PA. The tiller, which is believed to be over 100 years old, has made its way to the Berks History Center. At 19 feet long and over 500 pounds, it is har...d to believe that his artifact had gone unnoticed for so long. On November 30, 2019, a crew of 11 volunteers met at the Northeast Taproom to retrieve Old Glory from its hiding place. After a short time and a lot of muscle power, the behemoth tiller saw the light of day for the first time since the dawn of the 21st century. Thanks to Orth's Towing, Old Glory was transported to its new home at the Berks History Center. While the efforts to move Old Glory were great, the stories behind this artifact were well worth the work. In his research, Rick discovered that Old Glory was one of many tillers that coasted the streets of Reading in the late 1800s and early 1900s. "Coasting" down popular sledding slopes, such as Chestnut, Buttonwood, Elm, Greenwich, Spring and Robeson streets, was a favorite winter pastime in the City of Reading. As for Old Glory, up to 20 children could fit on the sled, which could travel up to 65-70mph, with no way of stopping it. Tillers provided an entertaining yet dangerous thrill for children and adults alike and the phenomena was commonplace until several serious accidents caused authorities to start cracking down on the activity. By 1925, tillers were rarely seen on city streets. Old Glory was involved in an accident with an 8 man tiller at the intersection of 11th and Chestnuts Streets on February 16, 1916. It has sat in the basement of the Northeast Taproom at 12th and Robeson since--until last week when it was moved to the Berks History Center. Tune in next week for the next #MysteryMonday object!

Any guess as to what this #MysteryMonday object from the Berks History Center museum collection might be? Tune in tomorrow for the big reveal!

American Revolutionaries struggled with a key question: would the words of the Declaration of Independence, that all men are created equal, apply to all people? From the outbreak of the Revolution, people of African descent asked and answered this question through their words and actions. In this talk, hear the stories and explore the objects that we use at the Museum [of the American Revolution] to help imagine what the Revolution was like for Phillis Wheatley, Elizabeth Freeman, James Forten, Harry Washington, and others. Welcome our Guest Speaker from the Museum of the American Revolution by joining the webinar TONIGHT at 7pm using the link below! https://zoom.us/j/92165699284

Our Education Curator, Vicky, shared her Fasnacht family story today on the blog! Click the link to read: https://berkshistorymysteries.wordpress.com//a-fasnacht-t/

This week's #MysteryMonday object is a c. 1800 Dieffenbach Organ, currently on display in the BHC's Auditorium. Built by John Jacob Dieffenbach (1744-1803) in Bethel, northwest of Reading, c. 1800. His signature and the date are marked on the inside back panel. He was the first of four generations to build organs, supplying them to churches throughout the area. This particular organ was used at Epler's church in Bern Township. The organ contains six ranks of pipes, for a to...tal of 289 altogether. Wind is provided by the performer by means of the two foot pedals. The case is made of black walnut, the wooden pipes are of walnut and spruce, and the keys are reclaimed ivory. John's great-grandson, Thomas Dieffenbach (1821-1900), rebuilt the organ in 1879 and added his signature and date to the inside of the bellows. He replaced the pedals and bellows, which increased the height by five inches to accommodate the new pedal system. Tune in next week for the next #MysteryMonday object!