Category: 1950s
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Reading Street Railway Company Strike
Read more: Reading Street Railway Company StrikeOn this day in 1950; the Reading Street Railway Company went on a sudden Bus Strike after negotiations on contracts came up short. This stopped all bus and street-car service in the city of Reading, which as you can imagine caused problems for those who relied on the service. Some of the conferees in a…
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Meckley’s Hat Shop
Read more: Meckley’s Hat ShopIf you ever visited Sinking Spring to purchase a hat from Meckley’s Hat Shop, you may have been acquainted with my great-grandfather, Ernest Meckley. He grew up in Fritztown and his career began in 1938 at Bollman Hat Factory in Adamstown. Ernie’s career with hats didn’t begin in retail but the manufacturing of the product.…
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Wilbur “Lefty” Reeser –
Sports Star to Sporting GoodsRead more: Wilbur “Lefty” Reeser –Wilbur “Lefty” Reeser was born on June 28th 1918 in West Lawn to Herbert and Mary Reeser. Judging from Lefty’s senior yearbook excerpt below, he was an all-around athlete during his adolescence. During his senior year at Wilson he led Berks County in boys basketball scoring and also took the Prexies baseball team to the…
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Distelfink Freeze – Rigg’s Drive-In
Read more: Distelfink Freeze – Rigg’s Drive-InDistelfink Freeze aka Rigg’s Drive In was another 1950s and 60s refreshment establishment and was located near Fleetwood. It was located on route 222 roughly 2 miles southwest of Kutztown. It was located along route 222 near the old Lincoln Tavern in part of the area torn down to make room for the Kutztown exit…
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Spirit of Stone Manor; The Eberly Estate
Read more: Spirit of Stone Manor; The Eberly EstateIf you have ever driven south on Route 10 and crested Green Tree Hill, you may have noticed a quiet old mansion sitting back in the shadows behind the rehab hospital. Maybe you have wondered what the story behind it is. The Tudor castle style mansion was built by Fink Construction Company in 1925 for…
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Mary’s Dog House Luncheonette
Read more: Mary’s Dog House LuncheonetteMary’s Dog House Luncheonette was a food establishment in St. Lawrence. Some of the favorite menu items were the hot dogs, hamburgers, baked beans, steak sandwiches, Bar-B-Cue and of course milk shakes. It was open between 11 a.m. and midnight seven days a week. It was located along Boyertown Road. Looking at the photos, it…
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Old Man Echo – Wyomissing’s Gate to the Underworld
Read more: Old Man Echo – Wyomissing’s Gate to the UnderworldIf you grew up in the Wyomissing Borough in the early and mid 20th century you might recall Old Man Echo. It was an entrance to the sewer water drainage system which could be followed for miles underneath the streets of Wyomissing. Presumably getting its name from the effect ones voice had when speaking or…
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Josiah Dives & the Ghosts of Folly Farm
Read more: Josiah Dives & the Ghosts of Folly FarmJosiah Dives was born in 1851 in Canterbury, England. He started his business career after moving to London at the age of 13 following his Father’s death. When coming to America in 1872, his first residence was Hartford, CT. This is where he met George Pomeroy and John Stewart. Together they came to Reading and…
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Defunct High Schools Series – The Comprehensive Conclusion
Read more: Defunct High Schools Series – The Comprehensive ConclusionI hope you have enjoyed the last several weeks as we have gone on a journey of the high school education system here in Berks County. This idea came to me when I considered that the senior class of 2020 has a less than ideal end to their high school career. Nothing exactly like this…
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Pensupreme
Read more: PensupremePensupreme was the trade name of Penn Dairy; which originated in Lancaster County. The dairy had restaurants referred to as “Pensupreme Shoppes” which served food and ice cream. They also branched into “Grocerettes” which were basically convenience stores in various places around eastern PA. The main milk processing plant was in York, PA. In Berks…
