Berks Beryllium Lands on Moon – On this day in 1969

On November 14th 1969 the second crewed flight to the moon, known as Apollo 12, launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It successfully made contact with the moon on this day, November 19th 1969. When it landed, so did small but significant pieces from Berks County.

Berks Beryllium
Nov 19th 1969 Reading Eagle

A number of components on the lunar lander Intrepid were made from beryllium supplied by Kawecki-Berylco Industries, Inc.Read Full Article

Muhlenberg Township High

Muhlenberg High School
Muhlenberg Township High School pictured in 1939

In 1830, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania enacted a law requiring all municipalities to have separate school districts. Muhlenberg Township became a municipality in 1851. At this time the Muhlenberg School District was officially established with a one-room school called Schlottman School which was located on Kutztown Road.

Muhlenberg Township High School was built in 1924-1925 at the price of nearly $335,000, which would equate to almost $5 million in 2020.… Read Full Article

Schell’s Mini-Golf, Restaurant and Dairy Swirl

Nothing says summertime like a trip to Schell’s for some minigolf and ice cream at the Dairy Swirl. Schell’s has been a landmark on 5th Street Highway in Muhlenberg Township since 1952. The Mini-golf course opened in 1953, and was made larger in 1969.

1960s

Many generations of Berks Countians have enjoyed summer evenings at this establishment, as they just celebrated their 65th Anniversary in business back in May 2017.… Read Full Article

The Reading Drive-in Theatre

Reading Drive-In Theatre

 The Reading Drive-In Theatre opened on August 26, 1949. It cost 65 cents to per adult to watch “Perils of Pauline” on opening night. The Reading Drive-In was located on the 5th Street several miles north of Reading in Temple, Pa. The opening day newspaper ad boasted that the cost to build the entire outdoor theatre and amenities cost $200k. In 2020 that would equate to about $2.15 million. It… Read Full Article

Berks Nostalgia